How Did The Industrial Revolution Affect Society

It was a period of booming business, of contribution and convenience, and of improvements and innovations, but it was also a period where transportation rapidly evolved – that’s the Industrial Revolution. The invention of canals, enhanced roads, railways and ships brought about many significant changes on both society and economy (as well as many different aspects of life) during that time, and even until today.

With the Industrial Revolution and the subsequent mechanisation of production, there was a huge need for a transportation system.3 Raw materials and fuel needed to be supplied to factories, and a route was required for finished goods to be distributed around the country, as well as the rest of the world. That led to the invention of canals.
In the early days of the Industrial Revolution (around 1750), roads simply could not handle heavy goods and the vehicles needed to move these produces did not exist.5 The first canal was completed in 1761 by an engineer called James Brindley who was commissioned by Duke Bridgewater. The big advantages to using canals were that manufacturers could ship more products and heavy goods (such as coal iron and brick4) at a time. They were also a perfect mode of transportation for fragile products and could
After the canals were built, mine owners gained lots of profits as products don’t require as much effort to be transported. The price of coal fell in Manchester by 50% therefore making it cheaper and the cheaper.5 More roads were being built with turnpikes, which not only provided easier and quicker travel, but also collected revenue for the states. Railway travel became the most popular from of transport because it was economical, reliable, and fast.10. Even the poor could afford rail travel as three different classes of travel existed. Seaside fishing villages suddenly became fashionable and popular as day trips to the coast became