Key Terms in Transport, Trade, and Tourism
ADIF
Railway infrastructure manager, responsible for its maintenance, operation, and building new lines.
Popular Stores
Small retail stores offering inexpensive, everyday products.
Tourist Areas
Areas with a high density of tourists, whether foreign or domestic.
Highway (Type 1)
A road with separate lanes for opposing traffic directions, typically without level crossings.
Information Highway
Electronic connectivity networks for circulating texts, images, and sounds instantly from any point.
Motorway of the Sea
Seaways utilizing high-capacity ships between ports in EU countries to transport goods and provide effective services.
Self-Service
A retail system where products are directly accessible to customers, potentially reducing staffing needs and optimizing the sales floor area.
Highway (Type 2)
A road with separate carriageways for opposing traffic directions and no level intersections (similar to a motorway or freeway).
Trade Balance
The difference between a country’s imports and exports over a specific period.
Shopping Centers
Retail complexes typically formed by hypermarkets, various shops, and leisure facilities.
Traditional Trade
Retail sector characterized by small, often family-run local shops, frequently located in older buildings and managed by individual entrepreneurs with minimal staff.
Containers
Standardized reusable boxes used to transport general merchandise efficiently, reducing handling time and costs.
Tourist Accommodation
Types of lodging for tourists, such as campsites, apartments, and holiday homes (e.g., establishments in Santa Cruz).
Tourism Seasonality
The concentration of tourism demand within specific months or seasons of the year.
FEVE
Spanish state-owned company providing passenger and freight services on narrow-gauge railway lines.
FITUR
International tourism trade fair (held in Spain) designed to assess foreign competition and attract new clientele.
Department Stores
Large retail establishments selling a wide variety of goods (e.g., approximately 50,000 different items or ‘references’) organized into distinct sections or departments.
Bulk Solids
Solid raw materials transported in large, unpackaged quantities (e.g., coal), typically handled in ports near mineral sources or relevant industries.
Liquid Bulk
Liquid raw materials transported in large, unpackaged quantities (e.g., petroleum), typically handled in ports near refineries and petrochemical industries.
Hinterland
The inland area served by a port or other economic hub.
Superstore
A large retail store, typically exceeding 2,500 square meters in sales area, combining features of a supermarket and a department store.
Labor
Human effort applied in the production of goods and services. In some contexts (e.g., specific sectors or regions), it might occupy a large percentage (like 60%) of the workforce, with strong contrasts between skilled and unskilled workers.
WTO
World Trade Organization: An intergovernmental organization that promotes and regulates international trade liberalization.
OPEC
Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries: An intergovernmental organization coordinating petroleum policies of its member countries.
Package Tours
Travel arrangements combining lodging, transportation, and potentially other services (meals, activities), sold together as a single package, typically arranged by a travel agency or tour operator.
PEIT
Strategic Plan for Infrastructure and Transport (Plan Estratégico de Infraestructuras y Transporte): A Spanish strategic plan aiming to achieve an efficient transport system, environmental sustainability, and economic competitiveness.
Tourist Points
Specific, often isolated locations that attract tourists due to particular natural features, cultural attractions, or other points of interest.
High-Speed Network
Railway network designed for trains operating at speeds exceeding 200 km/h (e.g., the Spanish AVE network, initially Madrid-Seville, later extended to regions like Aragon, Catalonia, and León).
Conventional Network
Railway network operating at speeds below 200 km/h, often featuring a radial structure centered on a major hub, with secondary and complementary branch lines.
Narrow-Gauge Network
Railway network using a track gauge narrower than the standard gauge (e.g., the former FEVE network in Spain), primarily located on the Cantabrian coast, with lines also present in other communities (León, Catalonia, Valencia, Murcia, Balearic Islands).
RENFE
Spanish national railway company providing passenger and freight services on the conventional and high-speed networks, also responsible for rolling stock maintenance.
Production Services
Tertiary sector activities that support industrial production, occurring both before (e.g., research and development, finance) and after (e.g., marketing, logistics, distribution) the manufacturing process.
ITS
Intelligent Transportation Systems: The application of sensing, analysis, control, and communications technologies to ground transportation infrastructure and vehicles to improve safety, mobility, and efficiency for users.
Economic Tertiarization
The process by which the tertiary (service) sector, including financial services, grows relative to other economic sectors (primary and secondary), eventually becoming the leading sector in terms of employment and contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Tourism
Activities undertaken by people during travel and stays in places outside their usual environment for a period of less than one consecutive year, for leisure, business, or other purposes.
Thermal Tourism
Tourism centered around areas possessing natural hot springs or mineral springs, often combining medical treatments, wellness programs, or relaxation therapies within quiet, restful locations.