Transport in Cornwall

The evolution of transport in Cornwall has been shaped by the county's strong maritime, mining and industrial traditions and much of the transport infrastructure reflects this heritage.

However, with the decline in mining and industry over the last century and more, transport provision in Cornwall has increasingly focused on the needs of tourism and holiday-makers. An example of this is the improvement of the A30 trunk road; the substantial dual carriageway sections have greatly relieved summer traffic congestion but are very under-used in winter.

In the case of the railway system, although Cornwall has lost some of its rail network since nationalisation in 1948, it has fared better than many other rural areas of England. In part, this is because many Cornish lines serve holiday destinations and are visitor attractions in their own right.

The inland transport network consists of longitudinal spines (the A30, A38 and A39 trunk roads (though the A39 is no longer designated as such) and the former Great Western Railway main line through Cornwall) from which secondary roads and railway branch lines radiate to ports and resorts on the coast.

As a maritime county, ports and sea transport were once vital to Cornwall's prosperity: however, they are less important now. Fishing, too, has traditionally been a core industry and Newlyn remains one of the largest fishing ports in southern Britain and a major centre for distribution of fish and shell-fish to continental Europe. Fish from the ports was an important component of the freight traffic for Cornish railways although now the fish is conveyed by road.

As well as Newlyn, several other ports (notably Padstow) and also Newquay cater for commercial fishing on a smaller scale. Many more small harbours cater to sport angling, again reflecting the county's reliance on tourism and leisure.

The coastline of Cornwall is deeply indented (particularly in the south) by estuaries and rias (flooded river valleys) so Cornwall's ferry crossings are an important part of today's transport mix. The Isles of Scilly are accessible by sea from Penzance.

Cornwall is one of the few English counties with no motorways. However, trunk road access to and from the rest of the UK is at the heart of Cornwall's transport infrastructure and it is now possible to drive on uninterrupted dual carriageway from Glasgow to Bodmin Moor.