The Environmental Impacts of
Multimodal Transportation
The increasing importance of multimodal infrastructure
and intermodal services will intensify the
environmental impacts of transportation activities in
the future. Identifying major transportation activities
with impacts on natural resources is an essential first
step in effective environmental management. Three
sets of activities associated with transportation —
vehicle operations, equipment maintenance, and
facilities operations — can have negative impacts on
the environment. In addition, transportation infrastructure
construction and expansion often generate
pollutants or endanger natural resources.