Commerce is the large-scale organized system of activities, functions, procedures and institutions that directly or indirectly contribute to the smooth, unhindered distribution and transfer of goods and services on a substantial scale and at the right time, place, quantity, quality and price through various channels from the original producers to the final consumers within local, regional, national or international economies. The diversity in the distribution of natural resources , differences of human needs and wants , and division of labour along with comparative advantage are the principal factors that give rise to commercial exchanges.
56-640: The Domain Highway is a highway in Tasmania , Australia . The highway acts as a link road connecting traffic between Hobart 's two busiest highways; The Tasman Highway and the Brooker Highway while also bypassing the Hobart city centre . With recorded annual average daily traffic of 25,000, the single carriageway road is busier than some of Hobart's dual carriageway highways. Commencing at
112-668: A "highway" as only a way open for use by motor vehicles, but the California Supreme Court has held that "the definition of 'highway' in the Vehicle Code is used for special purposes of that act" and that canals of the Los Angeles neighborhood of Venice are "highways" that are entitled to be maintained with state highway funds. Large scale highway systems developed in the 20th century as automobile usage increased. The first United States limited-access road
168-508: A country and the rest of the world is called foreign or international trade , which consists of import trade and export trade, both being wholesale in general. Commerce not only includes trade as defined above, but also the auxiliary services or aids to trade and means that facilitate such trade. Auxiliary services aid trade by providing services which such as transportation , communication , warehousing , insurance , banking , credit financing to companies, advertising , packaging , and
224-713: A country. International commerce can be regulated by bilateral treaties between countries. After the second world war and the rise of free trade among nations, multilateral arrangements such as the GATT and later the World Trade Organization became the principal systems regulating global commerce. The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) is another important organization which sets rules and resolves disputes in international commerce. Where national government bodies undertake commercial activity with or inside other states, this commercial activity may fall outside
280-802: A five-year period." A 2021 study found that areas that obtained access to a new highway experienced a substantial increase in top-income taxpayers and a decline in low-income taxpayers. Highways also contributed to job and residential urban sprawl. Highways are extended linear sources of pollution . Roadway noise increases with operating speed so major highways generate more noise than arterial streets. Therefore, considerable noise health effects are expected from highway systems. Noise mitigation strategies exist to reduce sound levels at nearby sensitive receptors . The idea that highway design could be influenced by acoustical engineering considerations first arose about 1973. Air quality issues: Highways may contribute fewer emissions than arterials carrying
336-498: A general sense, business is the activity of earning money and making one's living through engaging in commerce. However, in a more specific sense, a business is an organization or activity for making a profit by providing goods and services which meet the needs of its customers or consumers. Business organizations typically operate in the primary (dealing with the extraction and sourcing of raw materials) and secondary (dealing with manufacturing intermediate or finished goods) sectors of
392-403: A highway available to vehicles is also available to foot or horse traffic, a highway available to horse traffic is available to cyclists and pedestrians; but there are exceptional cases in which a highway is only available to vehicles, or is subdivided into dedicated parallel sections for different users. A highway can share ground with a private right of way for which full use is not available to
448-438: A highway. Recent examples include toll bridges and tunnels which have the definition of highway imposed upon them (in a legal order applying only to the individual structure) to allow application of most traffic laws to those using them but without causing all of the general obligations or rights of use otherwise applicable to a highway. Limited access highways for vehicles, with their own traffic rules, are called "motorways" in
504-560: A number of similarly worded definitions such as "a way over which all members of the public have the right to pass and repass without hindrance" usually accompanied by "at all times"; ownership of the ground is for most purposes irrelevant, thus the term encompasses all such ways from the widest trunk roads in public ownership to the narrowest footpath providing unlimited pedestrian access over private land. A highway might be open to all forms of lawful land traffic (e.g. vehicular, horse, pedestrian) or limited to specific modes of traffic; usually
560-409: A public highway is also known as " The King's Highway ". The core definition of a highway is modified in various legislation for a number of purposes but only for the specific matters dealt with in each such piece of legislation. This is typically in the case of bridges, tunnels and other structures whose ownership, mode of use or availability would otherwise exclude them from the general definition of
616-669: A public road is not included in the relevant statistics. The United States has the world's largest network of highways, including both the Interstate Highway System and the United States Numbered Highway System . At least one of these networks is present in every state and they interconnect most major cities. It is also the world's most expensive mega-project, as the entirety of the Interstate Highway System
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#1732783526889672-681: A wider variety of goods and services, and encourages innovation and competition for better products . On the other hand, commerce can worsen economic inequality by concentrating wealth (and power ) into the hands of a small number of individuals , and by prioritizing short-term profit over long-term sustainability and ethical , social , and environmental considerations, leading to environmental degradation , labor exploitation and disregard for consumer safety . Unregulated, it can lead to excessive consumption (generating undesirable waste ) and unsustainable exploitation of nature (causing resource depletion ). Harnessing commerce's benefits for
728-481: Is a part of commerce and commerce is an aspect of business. Historian Peter Watson and Ramesh Manickam date the history of long-distance commerce from circa 150,000 years ago. In historic times, the introduction of currency as a standardized money facilitated the exchange of goods and services. Commerce was a costly endeavor in the antiquities because of the risky nature of transportation, which restricted it to local markets. Commerce then expanded along with
784-464: Is a significant negative externality which is difficult to evaluate quantitatively, making it difficult (but not impossible) to include in transport economics-based research and analysis. Congestion is considered a negative externality by economists. A 2016 study found that for the United States, "a 10% increase in a region's stock of highways causes a 1.7% increase in regional patenting over
840-432: Is any public or private road or other public way on land. It includes not just major roads, but also other public roads and rights of way . In the United States, it is also used as an equivalent term to controlled-access highway , or a translation for motorway , Autobahn , autostrada , autoroute , etc. According to Merriam-Webster , the use of the term predates the 12th century. According to Etymonline , "high"
896-413: Is being popular in many cities to combat most of the social problems caused from highways. In transport, demand can be measured in numbers of journeys made or in total distance travelled across all journeys (e.g. passenger-kilometres for public transport or vehicle-kilometres of travel (VKT) for private transport ). Supply is considered to be a measure of capacity. The price of the good (travel)
952-467: Is in the sense of "main". In North American and Australian English , major roads such as controlled-access highways or arterial roads are often state highways (Canada: provincial highways ). Other roads may be designated " county highways " in the US and Ontario . These classifications refer to the level of government (state, provincial, county) that maintains the roadway. In British English , "highway"
1008-504: Is measured using the generalised cost of travel, which includes both money and time expenditure. The effect of increases in supply (capacity) are of particular interest in transport economics (see induced demand ), as the potential environmental consequences are significant (see externalities below). In addition to providing benefits to their users, transport networks impose both positive and negative externalities on non-users. The consideration of these externalities—particularly
1064-437: Is not concerned with the extraction of raw materials and the manufacturing of goods. Viewed in this way, commerce is a broader concept and an overall, all-encompassing aspect of business. Commerce provides the underlying large-scale transactional environment comprising all kinds of exchanges within which individual business organizations operate for generating profits. Commerce is distinguishable from trade as well. Trade
1120-428: Is primarily a legal term. Everyday use normally implies roads, while the legal use covers any route or path with a public right of access, including footpaths etc. The term has led to several related derived terms, including highway system , highway code , highway patrol and highwayman . Major highways are often named and numbered by the governments that typically develop and maintain them. Australia's Highway 1
1176-773: Is the longest national highway in the world at over 14,500 kilometres (9,000 mi) and runs almost the entire way around the continent. China has the world's largest network of highways, followed closely by the United States. Some highways, like the Pan-American Highway or the European routes , span multiple countries. Some major highway routes include ferry services, such as US Route 10 , which crosses Lake Michigan . Traditionally highways were used by people on foot or on horses . Later they also accommodated carriages , bicycles and eventually motor cars , facilitated by advancements in road construction . In
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#17327835268891232-412: Is the transaction (buying and selling) of goods and services that makes a profit for the seller and satisfies the want or need of the buyer. When trade is carried out within a country, it is called home or domestic trade , which can be wholesale or retail . A wholesaler buys from the producer in bulk and sells to the retailer who then sells again to the final consumer in smaller quantities. Trade between
1288-745: The Brooker Highway at Cornelian Bay and heading southeast between the banks of the Derwent River and the Domain and Botanical Gardens . The highway ends at the Tasman Highway , on the western approach of the Tasman Bridge . The entire highway is in the City of Hobart local government area. This Australian road or road transport-related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Highway A highway
1344-538: The European Union ) or coalitions (like BRICS ) leading to its reconfiguration. The English-language word commerce has been derived from the Latin word commercium , from com ("together") and merx ("merchandise"). Despite many similarities (to the extent that they are sometimes used as synonyms in layman's terms and in other contexts), commerce, business and trade are distinct concepts. In
1400-478: The Industrial Revolution fundamentally reshaped commerce. In the post-colonial 20th century, free market principles gained ground, multinational corporations and consumer economies thrived in U.S.-led capitalist countries and free trade agreements (like GATT and WTO ) emerged, whereas communist economies encountered trade restrictions , limiting consumer choice . Furthermore, in
1456-426: The 15th to the early 20th century, European colonial powers dominated global commerce on an unprecedented scale, giving rise to maritime trade empires with their powerful colonial trade companies (e.g., Dutch East India Company and British East India Company ) and ushering in an unprecedented global exchange (see Columbian exchange ). In the 19th century, modern banking and related international markets along with
1512-419: The 1920s and 1930s, many nations began investing heavily in highway systems in an effort to spur commerce and bolster national defence. Major highways that connect cities in populous developed and developing countries usually incorporate features intended to enhance the road's capacity, efficiency, and safety to various degrees. Such features include a reduction in the number of locations for user access ,
1568-427: The U.S., many of these effects are from racist planning practices from before the advent of civil rights . This would result in the vast majority of displacement and social effects mostly going to people like African Americans. In recent times, the use of freeway removal or the public policy of urban planning to demolish freeways and create mixed-use urban areas, parks, residential, commercial, or other land uses
1624-671: The UK. Scots law is similar to English law with regard to highways but with differing terminology and legislation. What is defined in England as a highway will often in Scotland be what is defined by s.151 Roads (Scotland) Act 1984 (but only "in this act" although other legislation could imitate) simply as a road , that is: The word highway is itself no longer a statutory expression in Scots law but remains in common law. In American law,
1680-411: The economy and their goal is to sell raw materials or manufactured goods for profit. In the tertiary sector , businesses sell services for profit. Commerce, in contrast to the concept of business discussed above, deals with the movement and distribution of raw materials as well as finished or intermediate (but valuable) goods and services from the manufacturers to the end customers on a large scale. It
1736-712: The entire supply chain . Trade is the exchange of goods (including raw materials , intermediate and finished goods ) and services between buyers and sellers in return for an agreed-upon price at traditional (or online ) marketplaces . It is categorized into domestic trade , including retail and wholesale as well as local, regional, inter-regional and international/foreign trade (encompassing import , export and entrepôt/re-export trades). The exchange of currencies (in foreign exchange markets ), commodities (in commodity markets /exchanges) and securities and derivatives (in stock exchanges and financial markets ) in specialized exchange markets also falls under
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1792-469: The federal government's Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices ). Italy was the first country in the world to build controlled-access highways reserved for fast traffic and for motor vehicles only. The Autostrada dei Laghi ("Lakes Highway"), the first built in the world, connecting Milan to Lake Como and Lake Maggiore , and now parts of the A8 and A9 highways, was devised by Piero Puricelli and
1848-431: The general public: for example farm roads which the owner may use for any purpose but for which the general public only has a right of use on foot or horseback. The status of highway on most older roads has been gained by established public use, while newer roads are typically dedicated as highways from the time they are adopted (taken into the care and control of a council or other public authority). In England and Wales,
1904-540: The improvement of transportation systems over time. In the Middle Ages, long-distance and large-scale commerce was still limited within continents. Banking systems developed in medieval Europe, facilitating financial transactions across national boundaries. Markets became a feature of town life, and were regulated by town authorities. With the advent of the age of exploration and oceangoing ships, commerce took an international, trans-continental stature. Currently
1960-512: The mid-20th century, the adoption of standardized shipping containers facilitated seamless and efficient intermodal freight transport , leading to a surge in international trade. By the century's end, developing countries saw their share in world trade rise from a quarter to a third. 21st century commerce is increasingly technology-driven (see e-commerce ), globalized , intricately regulated , ethically responsible and sustainability -focused, with multilateral economic integrations (like
2016-463: The negative ones—is a part of transport economics. Positive externalities of transport networks may include the ability to provide emergency services , increases in land value and agglomeration benefits . Negative externalities are wide-ranging and may include local air pollution , noise pollution , light pollution , safety hazards , community severance and congestion . The contribution of transport systems to potentially hazardous climate change
2072-513: The network. In South Korea , in February 1995 a bus lane (essentially an HOV -9) was established between the northern terminus and Sintanjin for important holidays and on 1 July 2008 bus lane enforcement between Seoul and Osan (Sintanjin on weekends) became daily between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. On 1 October this was adjusted to 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. weekdays, and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. weekends. In Hong Kong , some highways are set up with bus lanes to solve
2128-432: The number of intersections. They can also reduce the use of public transport , indirectly leading to greater pollution. High-occupancy vehicle lanes are being added to some newer/reconstructed highways in the United States and other countries around the world to encourage carpooling and mass transit. These lanes help reduce the number of cars on the highway and thus reduces pollution and traffic congestion by promoting
2184-659: The planning stage, this extra traffic may lead to the new road becoming congested sooner than would otherwise be anticipated by considering increases in vehicle ownership. More roads allow drivers to use their cars when otherwise alternatives may have been sought, or the journey may not have been made, which can mean that a new road brings only short-term mitigation of traffic congestion. Where highways are created through existing communities, there can be reduced community cohesion and more difficult local access. Consequently, property values have decreased in many cutoff neighborhoods, leading to decreased housing quality over time. Mostly in
2240-681: The reliability of international trans-oceanic shipping and mailing systems and the facility of the Internet has made commerce possible between cities, regions and countries situated anywhere in the world. In the 21st century, Internet-based electronic commerce (where financial information is transferred over Internet), and its subcategories such as wireless mobile commerce and social network -based social commerce have been and continue to get adopted widely. Legislative bodies and ministries or ministerial departments of commerce regulate, promote and manage domestic and foreign commercial activities within
2296-426: The roads around the world each year and was the leading cause of death among children 10–19 years of age. The report also noted that the problem was most severe in developing countries and that simple prevention measures could halve the number of deaths. For reasons of clear data collection, only harm involving a road vehicle is included. A person tripping with fatal consequences or dying for some unrelated reason on
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2352-534: The safety performance of roads and streets, and methods used to reduce the harm (deaths, injuries, and property damage) on the highway system from traffic collisions . It includes the design, construction and regulation of the roads , the vehicles used on them and the training of drivers and other road-users. A report published by the World Health Organization in 2004 estimated that some 1.2 million people were killed and 50 million injured on
2408-634: The same vehicle volumes. This is because high, constant-speed operation creates an emissions reduction compared to vehicular flows with stops and starts. However, concentrations of air pollutants near highways may be higher due to increased traffic volumes. Therefore, the risk of exposure to elevated levels of air pollutants from a highway may be considerable, and further magnified when highways have traffic congestion . New highways can also cause habitat fragmentation , encourage urban sprawl and allow human intrusion into previously untouched areas, as well as (counterintuitively) increasing congestion, by increasing
2464-468: The services of commercial agents and agencies. In other words, commerce encompasses a wide array of political, economical, technological, logistical, legal, regulatory, social and cultural aspects of trade on a large scale. From a marketing perspective, commerce creates time and place utility by making goods and services available to the customers at the right place and at the right time by changing their location or placement. Described in this manner, trade
2520-566: The society while mitigating its drawbacks remains vital for policymakers , businesses and other stakeholders . Commerce traces its origins to ancient localized barter systems, leading to the establishment of periodic marketplaces, and culminating in the development of currencies for efficient trade. In medieval times, trade routes (like the Silk Road ) with pivotal commercial hubs (like Venice ) connected regions and continents, enabling long-distance trade and cultural exchange . From
2576-714: The traffic congestion. Traffic congestion was a principal problem in major roads and highways in the Philippines , especially in Metro Manila and other major cities. The government decided to set up some bus lanes in Metro Manila like in the Epifanio delos Santos Avenue . The following is a list of highways by country in alphabetical order. Commerce Commerce consists of trade and aids to trade (i.e. auxiliary commercial services) taking place along
2632-1414: The umbrella of trade. On the other hand, auxiliary commercial activities (aids to trade) which can facilitate trade include commercial intermediaries , banking , credit financing and related services, transportation , packaging , warehousing , communication , advertising and insurance . Their purpose is to remove hindrances related to direct personal contact, payments , savings , funding , separation of place and time, product protection and preservation, knowledge and risk . The broader framework of commerce incorporates additional elements and factors such as laws and regulations (including intellectual property rights and antitrust laws ), policies , tariffs and trade barriers , consumers and consumer trends , producers and production strategies, supply chains and their management , financial transactions for ordinary and extraordinary business activities, market dynamics (including supply and demand ), technological innovation , competition and entrepreneurship , trade agreements , multinational corporations and small and medium-sized enterprisess (SMEs), and macroeconomic factors (like economic stability ). Commerce drives economic growth , development and prosperity , promotes regional and international interdependence , fosters cultural exchange , creates jobs , improves people's standard of living by giving them access to
2688-488: The use of dual carriageways with two or more lanes on each carriageway, and grade-separated junctions with other roads and modes of transport. These features are typically present on highways built as motorways ( freeways ). The general legal definition deals with right of use, not the form of construction; this is distinct from e.g. the popular use of the word in the US. A highway is defined in English common law by
2744-445: The use of carpooling in order to be able to use these lanes. However, they tend to require dedicated lanes on a highway, which makes them difficult to construct in dense urban areas where they are the most effective. To address habitat fragmentation, wildlife crossings have become increasingly popular in many countries. Wildlife crossings allow animals to safely cross human-made barriers like highways. Road traffic safety describes
2800-837: The usual principle that a road available to vehicular traffic was also available to horse or pedestrian traffic as is usually the only practical change when non-motorways are reclassified as special roads . The first section of motorway in the UK opened in 1958 (part of the M6 motorway) and then in 1959 the first section of the M1 motorway . Often reducing travel times relative to city or town streets, highways with limited access and grade separation can create increased opportunities for people to travel for business, trade or pleasure and also provide trade routes for goods. Highways can reduce commute and other travel time but additional road capacity can also release latent traffic demand . If not accurately predicted at
2856-456: The word "highway" is sometimes used to denote any public way used for travel, whether a "road, street, and parkway"; however, in practical and useful meaning, a "highway" is a major and significant, well-constructed road that is capable of carrying reasonably heavy to extremely heavy traffic. Highways generally have a route number designated by the state and federal departments of transportation. California Vehicle Code, Sections 360, 590, define
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#17327835268892912-576: Was constructed on Long Island, New York, and known as the Long Island Motor Parkway or the Vanderbilt Motor Parkway. It was completed in 1911. It included many modern features, including banked turns , guard rails and reinforced concrete tarmac . Traffic could turn left between the parkway and connectors, crossing oncoming traffic, so it was not a controlled-access highway (or "freeway" as later defined by
2968-483: Was estimated to cost $ 27 billion in 1955 (equivalent to $ 240 billion in 2023 ). China's highway network is the second most extensive in the world, with a total length of about 3,573,000 kilometres (2,220,000 mi). China's expressway network is the longest Expressway system in the world, and it is quickly expanding, stretching some 85,000 kilometres (53,000 mi) at the end of 2011. In 2008 alone, 6,433 kilometres (3,997 mi) expressways were added to
3024-566: Was inaugurated in 1924. This highway, called autostrada , contained only one lane in each direction and no interchanges. The Southern State Parkway opened in 1927, while the Long Island Motor Parkway was closed in 1937 and replaced by the Northern State Parkway (opened 1931) and the contiguous Grand Central Parkway (opened 1936). In Germany, construction of the Bonn-Cologne Autobahn began in 1929 and
3080-626: Was opened in 1932 by Konrad Adenauer , then the mayor of Cologne . Soon the Autobahn was the first limited-access, high-speed road network in the world, with the first section from Frankfurt am Main to Darmstadt opening in 1935. In the US, the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1921 (Phipps Act) enacted a fund to create an extensive highway system. In 1922, the first blueprint for a national highway system (the Pershing Map )
3136-576: Was published. The Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956 allocated $ 25 billion for the construction of the 66,000-kilometre-long (41,000 mi) Interstate Highway System over a 20-year period. In Great Britain , the Special Roads Act 1949 provided the legislative basis for roads for restricted classes of vehicles and non-standard or no speed limits applied (later mostly termed motorways but now with speed limits not exceeding 70 mph); in terms of general road law this legislation overturned
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