The Romanian State Railroads, directed by the Ministry of Transportation, operates all but a few minor lines and, in 1969, had about 147,000 employees. As steam locomotives are retired, they are being replaced by diesels. Only a little more than 100 route-miles have been electrified. Officials expect that roads and motor vehicles will take increasing percentages of short-haul cargo and short-trip passenger traffic. Airlines may cut somewhat into the long-distance passenger traffic, but the railroads are expected to remain important for both their freight and passenger services.
Figure 4. Romanian Transportation System.
Table 2. Use of Transportation Facilities in Romania, 1950, 1960, and 1969
| Cargo Traffic | Total Freight (in million tons) | Ton-Miles (in millions) | |||||
| 1950 | 1960 | 1969 | 1950 | 1960 | 1969 | ||
| Railroads | 35.1 | 77.5 | 155.4 | 4,740 | 12,380 | 27,500 | |
| Motor transport | 1.0 | 56.7 | 215.6 | 26 | 583 | 2,830 | |
| Inland waterways | 1.1 | 1.9 | 3.1 | 418 | 540 | 728 | |
| Sea | 0.2 | 0.2 | 5.0 | 382 | 663 | 24,400 | |
| Air | 0.003 | 0.003 | 0.02 | 1 | 1 | 21 | |
| Pipeline | 1.0 | 5.6 | 9.2 | 118 | 637 | 790 | |
| Passenger Traffic | Total Passengers (in million) | Passenger-Miles (in millions) | |||||
| 1950 | 1960 | 1969 | 1950 | 1960 | 1969 | ||
| Railroads | 116.6 | 214.8 | 305.9 | 5,080 | 6,710 | 10,450 | |
| Motor transport | 11.3 | 71.8 | 306.9 | 242 | 887 | 4,220 | |
| Inland waterways | 0.6 | 1.2 | 1.4 | 10 | 25 | 43 | |
| Sea | 0.05 | 0.08 | 0.02 | 59 | 17 | 14 | |
| Air | 0.04 | 0.2 | 0.8 | 9 | 54 | 550 | |
Roads
Of the 47,800 miles of road, in 1969 about 6,000 miles—or 14 percent—were considered modernized. A little more than one-third had gravel or crushed stone to harden them, and almost exactly one-half had unimproved dirt surfaces.
About 7,600 miles were nationally maintained and included the greater portion—5,200 miles—of those in the modernized, improved category. Only about 1,400 miles of the local roads were modernized, and less than one-half of them had hardened surfaces. According to government planning reports, the road network is considered adequate in size, and all that can be allocated to it will be applied to its modernization. Motor transport was nearly negligible until after World War II, but between 1950 and 1969 it assumed importance that rivaled the railroads in both cargo and passenger traffic.
Waterways