The role of transportation systems in tourism development in Tanzania

The overall objective of this study was to find out the way and the extent at which transportation systems in Tanzania have weakened or strengthen tourism development. There are no enough studies and clear understanding on the role transportation systems on tourism development in Tanzania. This study want to address that and it aimed at identifying transportation needs and requirements to be able to boost tourism in Tanzania, assessing the level of safety and security of Tanzanian transportation systems and how they affect tourism and analyzing the effectiveness of transportation cost and how it influence tourism development in Tanzania. The study used a descriptive research designed. Survey data were gathered from various tour operators, travel agents, MNRT, and tourists. The study applied Kolmogorov-Smirnov test by the help of SPSS to analyze the response of 59 tour operators and travel agents and 70 tourists. The study identified transportation needs for the purpose of boosting tourism in Tanzania. These are maintenance of the existing roads, construction of more roads at the required standard, connecting tourist attractions to main roads, construction of local airports and enhancement of local flight operations and boat operation. The study established that the level of security and safety in transportation systems is not bad. Transportation costs locally are considered high by tourists. Infrastructure area is not given the required priority by the government’s budget.