Ships

Motorcycling is popular in Britain, both as a means of transport and as a pastime with over one million motorcyclists. A moped with an engine capacity up to 50cc can be ridden at the age of 16 with a provisional licence. The maximum legal speed a moped can be ridden is 30 mph (50kph). A full motorcycle licence can be obtained at the age of 17 after passing a test.

At the beginning of the 20th century, railway trains and canal barges were the main means of transporting heavy goods. Now around 65% are carried by lorries.

Buses and Coaches

There are many sightseeing, open top, buses in London and other cities.

Taxis

The rail network in Britain is one of the most extensive in Europe with over 11,000 miles (17,500km) of lines, some 2,500 stations and around 1,500 trains a day. Trains

The London underground railway system (or 'tube', as it is known locally) celebrated its centenary in 1990 and is internationally famous, ranking alongside the Paris metro and the New York subway. London's tube network covers the largest area of any underground rail system, with 253 miles of tracks, of which 20 miles are in shallow tunnels and 93 miles in deep tunnels. The tube runs to all areas of central and greater London, connecting all mainline stations. When in London, "the Tube" is a great means of getting around! The Tube

The trains travel under the sea in a very long tunnel called the Channel Tunnel. The tunnel was completed in 1995 and is 50 metres below the sea bed. Eurostar is the high-speed train service linking London, Ashford, Paris, Brussels, Lille, Avignon, Calais, Disneyland Resort Paris and the French Alps.

Journey Times

ENGLAND : There are 470 airports in England. London London has five airports : Heathrow, Gatwick, Stanstead, London City and Luton. The first three have underground connections to the centre of London and are the main London airports. Heathrow and Gatwick Airports are the two main centres for overseas flights. London (Heathrow) Airport is one of the largest airports in the world and has two tube stations. The number of passengers arriving and departing to or from London's airports equalled over 120 million in Heathrow handled 67m passengers, making the airport the busiest and best connected in the world. Source; CAA, BAA

Shipping still remains the main form of cargo transport in to and out of Britain, despite the opening of the Channel Tunnel to France in The busiest sea port is Dover. Many ferries cross the seas between England and Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands and France. Below is some information about ferry crossings from England to Ireland, France, Isle of Wight and Holland