Trinidad and Tobago - Transportation

In 2002, there were 8,320 km (5,170 mi) of roads, of which 4,252 km (2,642 mi) were paved. The more densely settled sections of both islands are served by reasonably adequate roads, but large sections of Tobago either have no motorable roads or are connected by narrow, tortuous, and poorly surfaced ones. In 2000, registered motor vehicles included 54,050 passenger cars and 14,560 commercial vehicles. The Public Service Transport Corp. is responsible for road transport. Trinidad's lone remaining railway, from Port-of-Spain to San Juan, was closed down in 1968.

The largest port installation for passengers and cargo is at Port-of-Spain. Brighton is an important port for oil and asphalt loading, and there are also oil terminals at Chaguaramas, Pointeà-Pierre, and Point Fortin. A deep-water port at Point Lisas accommodates energy-based industries at the Point Lisas industrial estate. Numerous steamship lines regularly schedule freight and passenger services from Europe and the Americas. Regularly scheduled coastal vessels connect Port-of-Spain with Scarborough. The main shipping line is the West Indies Shipping Service. In 2002, Trinidad and Tobago had 3 merchant ships with a total of 5,910 GRT.

Air facilities are concentrated at Piarco International Airport, about 26 km (16 mi) southeast of Port-of-Spain. There is a secondary main airport at Crown Point, on the western tip of Tobago. In 2001, there were six airports and airfields, three of which had paved runways. Trinidad and Tobago Airways—owned by the government and formed by the merger of British West Indian Airways (BWIA) International and Trinidad and Tobago Air Services in 1980—operates domestic, regional, and international services. In 2001, 1,123,600 passengers were carried on scheduled domestic and international airline flights.