唐代淮南地區位於淮河和長江之間，處於唐帝國的心臟地帶，因而交通運輸 均十分便捷。淮南地區的揚州，則因位於大運河和長江的交匯處，因此成爲淮南 乃至於整江淮地區的交通樞紐。淮南地區除了有隋代開鑿的大運河貫穿其間外， 且有長江和淮河，分別流經南境及北境。加以境內的大小河川、湖泊密佈，且大 多可通航，故水上交通不僅便捷，且載運量也相當大。淮南地區的路上交通方面， 亦因其地理位置處於江、淮之間，而成爲自古以來南北交通的重要孔道。本文擬 對淮南地區的地理形勢、區域交通，淮南的國內交通，以及海外交通等範疇進行 論述。期能對有唐一代，淮南地區的水、陸交通運輸的發展，與其對整體江淮地 區的區域經濟，乃至於唐帝國的貢獻及影響，有進一步的瞭解。
Located between Huai River and Yangtze River, a convenient place for transportation, the Huainan region was the heartland of the Tang Empire. Yang-Chou, located in the Huainan region at the intersection of the Grand Canal and Yangtze River, would become the traffic hub for Huainan and all of Jianghuai. Besides the Grand Canal built in Sui Dynasty, Yangtze River and Huai River also ran through the north and south of Huainan region respectively. In addition, the transportation by water was not only convenient and accommodating due to the large carrying capacity provided by the high volume of large and small rivers and lakes, most of which were navigable. As for transportation by land in the Huainan region, as this region was located between the Yangtze and Huai Rivers, its excellent geographical location had made it the main artery of communications between north and south down throughout the ages. The purpose of this study is to investigate the geographical environment, area traffic movements, external transport, and overseas transportation of the Huainan region. It is the authors hope that this study can further our understanding of the development of transportation by water and land in the Huainan region. This includes the significant contributions it made to the regional economies of the Jianghuai area and the substantial impact it had on the Tang Empire
