Our modern transportation systems are both a benefit and a hindrance for today’s civilizations. They are a benefit in that they enable many more activities that would be impossible in the past. During my career, I traveled all over the world helping electric utilities automate their processes and collaborating with peers. Without modern international air travel this would not be possible. About a decade before retirement, I purchased a second home in California Seirra-Nevada Mountains, and now I spend a significant of time up there recreating and working on my papers. The travel between my primary- and mountain-home is a 2-1/2-hour drive (one-way).
The hinderance for the world’s economies is, the transportation systems are the single largest emitter of greenhouse gas, and thus a primary driver of climate change. The world’s economies need to electrify these systems ASAP.