IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/transe/v155y2021ics1366554521002465.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

High-speed rail pricing: Implications for social welfare

Author

Listed:
  • Jiang, Changmin
  • Wang, Chunan

Abstract

This paper studies the competition between air transport and high-speed rail (HSR) when HSR adopts fixed pricing, and investigates the welfare effect of a reform to change HSR price from fixed to variable. We find that, first, due to the demand-side network effect, HSR traffic may increase with the fixed price. Furthermore, when the HSR operator is a social welfare maximizing monopoly, consistent with general industrial organization theory, social welfare will always increase if HSR moves from fixed price to variable price. However, when the HSR operator maximizes its profit or a weighted sum of profit and social welfare, or when the HSR operator and the airline compete, because of the interaction between the air and HSR services and the horizontal product differentiation of HSR services, social welfare may be greater under the fixed price if that fixed price is sufficiently low.

Suggested Citation

  • Jiang, Changmin & Wang, Chunan, 2021. "High-speed rail pricing: Implications for social welfare," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 155(C).
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:transe:v:155:y:2021:i:c:s1366554521002465
    DOI: 10.1016/j.tre.2021.102484
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1366554521002465
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.tre.2021.102484?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Dobruszkes, Frédéric & Dehon, Catherine & Givoni, Moshe, 2014. "Does European high-speed rail affect the current level of air services? An EU-wide analysis," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 461-475.
    2. Dobruszkes, Frédéric, 2011. "High-speed rail and air transport competition in Western Europe: A supply-oriented perspective," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 18(6), pages 870-879, November.
    3. Wan, Yulai & Ha, Hun-Koo & Yoshida, Yuichiro & Zhang, Anming, 2016. "Airlines’ reaction to high-speed rail entries: Empirical study of the Northeast Asian market," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 532-557.
    4. Wang, Chunan & Wang, Xiaoyu, 2019. "Airport congestion delays and airline networks," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 328-349.
    5. Xia, Wenyi & Zhang, Anming, 2016. "High-speed rail and air transport competition and cooperation: A vertical differentiation approach," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 456-481.
    6. Jiang, Mei & Jiang, Changmin & Xiao, Yi-bin & Wang, Chunan, 2021. "Air-HSR cooperation: Impacts on service frequency and environment," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    7. Marc Ivaldi & Catherine Vibes, 2008. "Price Competition in the Intercity Passenger Transport Market: A Simulation Model," Journal of Transport Economics and Policy, University of Bath, vol. 42(2), pages 225-254, May.
    8. Ming Hsin Lin, 2015. "Airline Network Competition with New Brand Subsidiaries," Journal of Transport Economics and Policy, University of Bath, vol. 49(1), pages 58-78, January.
    9. Jiang, Changmin & Zhang, Anming, 2014. "Effects of high-speed rail and airline cooperation under hub airport capacity constraint," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 33-49.
    10. D’Alfonso, Tiziana & Jiang, Changmin & Bracaglia, Valentina, 2016. "Air transport and high-speed rail competition: Environmental implications and mitigation strategies," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 261-276.
    11. Yang, Hangjun & Zhang, Anming, 2012. "Effects of high-speed rail and air transport competition on prices, profits and welfare," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 46(10), pages 1322-1333.
    12. Chou, Jui-Sheng & Chien, Ya-Ling & Nguyen, Ngoc-Mai & Truong, Dinh-Nhat, 2018. "Pricing policy of floating ticket fare for riding high speed rail based on time-space compression," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 179-192.
    13. Jan K. Brueckner, 2004. "Network Structure and Airline Scheduling," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(2), pages 291-312, June.
    14. Lin, Ming Hsin, 2004. "Strategic airline alliances and endogenous Stackelberg equilibria," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 40(5), pages 357-384, September.
    15. Jiang, Changmin & Zhang, Anming, 2016. "Airline network choice and market coverage under high-speed rail competition," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 248-260.
    16. Álvarez-SanJaime, Óscar & Cantos-Sanchez, Pedro & Moner-Colonques, Rafael & Sempere-Monerris, Jose J., 2015. "A model of internal and external competition in a High Speed Rail line," Economics of Transportation, Elsevier, vol. 4(3), pages 178-187.
    17. Wang, Wei & Sun, Huijun & Wu, Jianjun, 2020. "How does the decision of high-speed rail operator affect social welfare? Considering competition between high-speed rail and air transport," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 1-15.
    18. Álvarez-SanJaime, Óscar & Cantos-Sanchez, Pedro & Moner-Colonques, Rafael & Sempere-Monerris, Jose J., 2020. "Pricing and infrastructure fees in shaping cooperation in a model of high-speed rail and airline competition," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 140(C), pages 22-41.
    19. Lin, Ming Hsin, 2008. "Airline alliances and entry deterrence," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 44(4), pages 637-652, July.
    20. Liao, Weijun & Wang, Chunan, 2021. "Airline emissions charges and airline networks," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    21. Flores-Fillol, Ricardo, 2009. "Airline competition and network structure," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 43(10), pages 966-983, December.
    22. Álvarez-SanJaime, Óscar & Cantos-Sanchez, Pedro & Moner-Colonques, Rafael & Sempere-Monerris, Jose J., 2016. "Rail access charges and internal competition in high speed trains," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 184-195.
    23. Lin, Ming Hsin, 2012. "Airlines-within-airlines strategies and existence of low-cost carriers," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 48(3), pages 637-651.
    24. Wang, Kun & Xia, Wenyi & Zhang, Anming & Zhang, Qiong, 2018. "Effects of train speed on airline demand and price: Theory and empirical evidence from a natural experiment," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 99-130.
    25. Silva, Hugo E. & Verhoef, Erik T., 2013. "Optimal pricing of flights and passengers at congested airports and the efficiency of atomistic charges," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 1-13.
    26. Nirvikar Singh & Xavier Vives, 1984. "Price and Quantity Competition in a Differentiated Duopoly," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 15(4), pages 546-554, Winter.
    27. Fu, Xiaowen & Zhang, Anming & Lei, Zheng, 2012. "Will China’s airline industry survive the entry of high-speed rail?," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 35(1), pages 13-25.
    28. Fageda, Xavier & Flores-Fillol, Ricardo, 2015. "A note on optimal airline networks under airport congestion," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 90-94.
    29. Xia, Wenyi & Jiang, Changmin & Wang, Kun & Zhang, Anming, 2019. "Air-rail revenue sharing in a multi-airport system: Effects on traffic and social welfare," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 121(C), pages 304-319.
    30. Frédéric Dobruszkes, 2011. "High-speed rail and air transport competition in Western Europe: A supply-oriented perspective," ULB Institutional Repository 2013/96164, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    31. Liu, Shuli & Wan, Yulai & Ha, Hun-Koo & Yoshida, Yuichiro & Zhang, Anming, 2019. "Impact of high-speed rail network development on airport traffic and traffic distribution: Evidence from China and Japan," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 115-135.
    32. Jiang, Changmin & D'Alfonso, Tiziana & Wan, Yulai, 2017. "Air-rail cooperation: Partnership level, market structure and welfare implications," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 461-482.
    33. Ricardo Flores-Fillol & Rafael Moner-Colonques, 2007. "Strategic Formation of Airline Alliances," Journal of Transport Economics and Policy, University of Bath, vol. 41(3), pages 427-449, September.
    34. Jinzi Zheng & Jun Liu, 2016. "The Research on Ticket Fare Optimization for China’s High-Speed Train," Mathematical Problems in Engineering, Hindawi, vol. 2016, pages 1-8, August.
    35. Orit Hassin & Oz Shy, 2004. "Code‐sharing Agreements and Interconnections in Markets for International Flights," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 12(3), pages 337-352, August.
    36. Wang, Chunan & Wang, Xiaoyu, 2019. "Why do airlines prefer multi-hub networks?," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 124(C), pages 56-74.
    37. Albalate, Daniel & Bel, Germà & Fageda, Xavier, 2015. "Competition and cooperation between high-speed rail and air transportation services in Europe," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 166-174.
    38. D’Alfonso, Tiziana & Jiang, Changmin & Bracaglia, Valentina, 2015. "Would competition between air transport and high-speed rail benefit environment and social welfare?," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 118-137.
    39. Avenali, Alessandro & Bracaglia, Valentina & D'Alfonso, Tiziana & Reverberi, Pierfrancesco, 2018. "Strategic formation and welfare effects of airline-high speed rail agreements," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 117(PA), pages 393-411.
    40. Hugo E. Silva & Erik T. Verhoef, 2011. "Optimal Pricing of Flights and Passengers at Congested Airports: The Efficiency of Atomistic Charges," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 11-179/3, Tinbergen Institute, revised 28 Mar 2013.
    41. David M. Kreps & Jose A. Scheinkman, 1983. "Quantity Precommitment and Bertrand Competition Yield Cournot Outcomes," Bell Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 14(2), pages 326-337, Autumn.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Wang, Chunan & Jiang, Changmin & Zhang, Anming, 2021. "Effects of Airline Entry on High-Speed Rail," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 154(C), pages 242-265.
    2. Jiang, Changmin & Wang, Kun & Wang, Qiang & Yang, Hangjun, 2022. "The Impact of High-Speed Rail Competition on Airline On-Time Performance," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 161(C), pages 109-127.
    3. Bugalia, Nikhil & Maemura, Yu & Dasari, Rohit & Patidar, Manoj, 2023. "A system dynamics model for effective management strategies of High-Speed Railway (HSR) projects involving private sector participation," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 175(C).
    4. Wang, Chunan & Jiang, Changmin, 2022. "How do pandemics affect intercity air travel? Implications for traffic and environment," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 166(C), pages 330-353.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Jiang, Mei & Jiang, Changmin & Xiao, Yi-bin & Wang, Chunan, 2021. "Air-HSR cooperation: Impacts on service frequency and environment," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    2. Wang, Chunan & Jiang, Changmin & Zhang, Anming, 2021. "Effects of Airline Entry on High-Speed Rail," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 154(C), pages 242-265.
    3. Wang, Wei & Sun, Huijun & Wu, Jianjun, 2020. "How does the decision of high-speed rail operator affect social welfare? Considering competition between high-speed rail and air transport," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 1-15.
    4. Wang, Chunan & Jiang, Changmin, 2022. "How do pandemics affect intercity air travel? Implications for traffic and environment," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 166(C), pages 330-353.
    5. Zhang, Anming & Wan, Yulai & Yang, Hangjun, 2019. "Impacts of high-speed rail on airlines, airports and regional economies: A survey of recent research," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 1-19.
    6. Chen, Yilin & Yang, Hangjun & Wang, Kun & Guo, Lin, 2022. "Intercity network expansion by low-cost carrier or high-speed rail, from the environmental perspective," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 104(C).
    7. Zhu, Feng & Wu, Xu & Cao, Chengxuan, 2021. "High-speed rail and air transport competition under high flight delay conditions in China: A case study of the Beijing-Shanghai corridor," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    8. Xia, Wenyi & Jiang, Changmin & Wang, Kun & Zhang, Anming, 2019. "Air-rail revenue sharing in a multi-airport system: Effects on traffic and social welfare," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 121(C), pages 304-319.
    9. Jiang, Changmin & D'Alfonso, Tiziana & Wan, Yulai, 2017. "Air-rail cooperation: Partnership level, market structure and welfare implications," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 461-482.
    10. Álvarez-SanJaime, Óscar & Cantos-Sanchez, Pedro & Moner-Colonques, Rafael & Sempere-Monerris, Jose J., 2020. "Pricing and infrastructure fees in shaping cooperation in a model of high-speed rail and airline competition," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 140(C), pages 22-41.
    11. Hou, Meng & Wang, Kun & Yang, Hangjun, 2021. "Hub airport slot Re-allocation and subsidy policy to speed up air traffic recovery amid COVID-19 pandemic --- case on the Chinese airline market," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    12. Jiang, Changmin & Wang, Kun & Wang, Qiang & Yang, Hangjun, 2022. "The Impact of High-Speed Rail Competition on Airline On-Time Performance," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 161(C), pages 109-127.
    13. Wang, Chunan & Wang, Xiaoyu, 2019. "Airport congestion delays and airline networks," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 328-349.
    14. Wang, Chunan & Wang, Xiaoyu, 2019. "Why do airlines prefer multi-hub networks?," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 124(C), pages 56-74.
    15. Wang, Kun & Xia, Wenyi & Zhang, Anming & Zhang, Qiong, 2018. "Effects of train speed on airline demand and price: Theory and empirical evidence from a natural experiment," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 99-130.
    16. Xia, Wenyi & Zhang, Anming, 2016. "High-speed rail and air transport competition and cooperation: A vertical differentiation approach," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 456-481.
    17. Jiang, Changmin, 2021. "Aviation tax and railway subsidy: An integrated policy," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 146(C), pages 1-13.
    18. Asep Yayat Nurhidayat & Hera Widyastuti & Sutikno & Dwi Phalita Upahita, 2023. "Research on Passengers’ Preferences and Impact of High-Speed Rail on Air Transport Demand," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-26, February.
    19. Su, Min & Luan, Weixin & Fu, Xiaowen & Yang, Zaili & Zhang, Rui, 2020. "The competition effects of low-cost carriers and high-speed rail on the Chinese aviation market," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 37-46.
    20. Li, Zhi-Chun & Tu, Ningwen & Fu, Xiaowen & Sheng, Dian, 2022. "Modeling the effects of airline and high-speed rail cooperation on multi-airport systems: The implications on congestion, competition and social welfare," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 155(C), pages 448-478.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:transe:v:155:y:2021:i:c:s1366554521002465. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/600244/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.