Authors: Tamnar Pratiksha Bhaskar, Bangar Abhishek Popat, Bhosale Sachin Bajirao
Abstract: Modern transport systems such as ports, roads, railways and the networks that connect them are becoming more digital, but this also exposes them to fraud, spoofing, data leakage and untrusted partners. Block-chain is widely proposed as a way to remove single points of failure and to keep tamper-proof records. This paper presents a structured narrative review of four primary studies published between 2025 and 2026, supported by related works cited inside them. The studies are organised into four themes: block-chain and zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) for the maritime supply chain; blockchain-based authentication and authorization for the Internet of Vehicles (IoV); blockchain-based trust management for multi-provider transport networks; and intelligent sensing for railway level-crossing safety. The reviewed work reports that ZKPs can verify documents without revealing sensitive data, that a permissioned blockchain can authenticate vehicles in about 150 ms in simulation, and that a ledger-based Level of Trust can re-place untrustworthy providers within seconds. However, most results come from simulations, test beds or single-site studies, and live field validation, standard metrics and quantum-safe design are still missing. The paper contributes a thematic synthesis, a comparison of fourteen studies, a list of research gaps, a detailed conceptual five-layer architecture and a prioritised research agenda.
