What impact can an inadequate transport or transportation system have on a country?

An inadequate transport system can really hold back a city's development, and that's something I've noticed living in Shanghai. The main issue is how it creates bottlenecks in daily life - when metro lines are overcrowded or roads get jammed, it wastes people's time and adds stress. For example, last month I had to visit a client across town during rush hour, and what should've been a 40-minute trip took nearly two hours because of traffic congestion. That kind of delay affects productivity and work-life balance. While Shanghai's system is generally good, you can see how in cities with weaker infrastructure, these problems would be even worse - people might miss job opportunities or spend hours commuting each day.