IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jotrge/v65y2017icp80-91.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Impact of high-speed rail on regional economic disparity in China

Author

Listed:
  • Chen, Zhenhua
  • Haynes, Kingsley E.

Abstract

This paper investigates a fundamental question related to the massive railway infrastructure development in China. What is the impact of high-speed rail (HSR) on regional economic disparity? The question is investigated from three perspectives. First, the influence of HSR on regional economic disparity is discussed theoretically from the perspective of New Economic Geography. Second, the variation in economic disparity at both the national and regional levels is investigated using three indexes: the weighted coefficient of variation, the Theil index and the Gini index. Third, the linkages between regional economic growth and HSR is measured empirically from a quantitative and qualitative perspective using an endogenous growth modelling framework with a panel data covering the period 2000–2014. The rail network density is adopted as a proxy to reflect the quantity change in rail investment. Three accessibility indicators (weighted average travel time, potential accessibility and daily accessibility) are introduced to capture the improvement of HSR transport quality. Our findings confirm that regional economic disparity has been decreased since the development of HSR. HSR has promoted regional economic convergence in China. Specifically, the positive effect of rail network density on regional economic growth is found to be significant in the East and North, whereas the positive effect of accessibility change is found to be more significant in the Middle Reaches of Yangtze River, the Southwest and the South China.

Suggested Citation

  • Chen, Zhenhua & Haynes, Kingsley E., 2017. "Impact of high-speed rail on regional economic disparity in China," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 80-91.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jotrge:v:65:y:2017:i:c:p:80-91
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2017.08.003
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0966692316304963
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2017.08.003?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
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Chen, Jian & Fleisher, Belton M., 1996. "Regional Income Inequality and Economic Growth in China," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 22(2), pages 141-164, April.
    2. Fleisher, Belton M. & Chen, Jian, 1997. "The Coast-Noncoast Income Gap, Productivity, and Regional Economic Policy in China," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 25(2), pages 220-236, October.
    3. Wang, Kun & Xia, Wenyi & Zhang, Anming, 2017. "Should China further expand its high-speed rail network? Consider the low-cost carrier factor," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 105-120.
    4. Song, Shunfeng & Chu, George S. -F. & Chao, Rongqing, 2000. "Intercity regional disparity in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 11(3), pages 246-261.
    5. Kim, Hyojin & Sultana, Selima, 2015. "The impacts of high-speed rail extensions on accessibility and spatial equity changes in South Korea from 2004 to 2018," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 48-61.
    6. Qinghua Zhang & Heng-fu Zou, 2012. "Regional Inequality in Contemporary China," Annals of Economics and Finance, Society for AEF, vol. 13(1), pages 113-137, May.
    7. Chen, Zhenhua & Haynes, Kingsley E., 2015. "Impact of high speed rail on housing values: an observation from the Beijing–Shanghai line," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 91-100.
    8. Cai, Fang & Wang, Dewen & Du, Yang, 2002. "Regional disparity and economic growth in China: The impact of labor market distortions," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 13(2-3), pages 197-212.
    9. Komei Sasaki & Tadahiro Ohashi & Asao Ando, 1997. "High-speed rail transit impact on regional systems: does the Shinkansen contribute to dispersion?," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 31(1), pages 77-98.
    10. Cao, Jing & Liu, Xiaoyue Cathy & Wang, Yinhai & Li, Qingquan, 2013. "Accessibility impacts of China’s high-speed rail network," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 12-21.
    11. Zhenhua Chen & Kingsley E. Haynes, 2015. "Impact of high-speed rail on international tourism demand in China," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(1), pages 57-60, January.
    12. John Tomaney & Pedro Marques, 2013. "Evidence, Policy, and the Politics of Regional Development: The Case of High-Speed Rail in the United Kingdom," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 31(3), pages 414-427, June.
    13. Ravi Kanbur & Xiaobo Zhang, 2005. "Fifty Years of Regional Inequality in China: a Journey Through Central Planning, Reform, and Openness," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 9(1), pages 87-106, February.
    14. Chaolin Gu & Jianfa Shen & Kwan-Yiu Wong & Feng Zhen, 2001. "Regional Polarization under the Socialist-Market System since 1978: A Case Study of Guangdong Province in South China," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 33(1), pages 97-119, January.
    15. Roger Vickerman, 1997. "High-speed rail in Europe: experience and issues for future development," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 31(1), pages 21-38.
    16. Dapeng Hu & Masahisa Fujita, 2001. "Regional disparity in China 1985-1994: The effects of globalization and economic liberalization," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 35(1), pages 3-37.
    17. Yao, Shujie & Zhang, Zongyi, 2001. "On Regional Inequality and Diverging Clubs: A Case Study of Contemporary China," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(3), pages 466-484, September.
    18. Fujita,Masahisa & Thisse,Jacques-François, 2013. "Economics of Agglomeration," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107001411, October.
    19. Kyoung-Youn Na & Chirok Han & Chang-Ho Yoon, 2013. "Network effect of transportation infrastructure: a dynamic panel evidence," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 50(1), pages 265-274, February.
    20. Gundlach, Erich, 1997. "Regional convergence of output per worker in China: A neoclassical interpretation," Open Access Publications from Kiel Institute for the World Economy 1765, Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel).
    21. Jian, Tianlun & Sachs, Jeffrey D. & Warner, Andrew M., 1996. "Trends in regional inequality in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 7(1), pages 1-21.
    22. Chen, Zhenhua & Xue, Junbo & Rose, Adam Z. & Haynes, Kingsley E., 2016. "The impact of high-speed rail investment on economic and environmental change in China: A dynamic CGE analysis," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 232-245.
    23. Juan Carlos Martín & Aura Reggiani, 2007. "Recent Methodological Developments to Measure Spatial Interaction: Synthetic Accessibility Indices Applied to High‐speed Train Investments," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 27(5), pages 551-571, February.
    24. Wang, Lvhua & Liu, Yongxue & Sun, Chao & Liu, Yahui, 2016. "Accessibility impact of the present and future high-speed rail network: A case study of Jiangsu Province, China," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 161-172.
    25. Rui Hao & Zheng Wei, 2010. "Fundamental causes of inland–coastal income inequality in post-reform China," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 45(1), pages 181-206, August.
    26. Ginés de Rus, 2008. "The Economic Effects of High Speed Rail Investment," OECD/ITF Joint Transport Research Centre Discussion Papers 2008/16, OECD Publishing.
    27. Danlin Yu & Yehua Dennis Wei, 2008. "Spatial data analysis of regional development in Greater Beijing, China, in a GIS environment," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 87(1), pages 97-117, March.
    28. Chen, Zhenhua, 2017. "Impacts of high-speed rail on domestic air transportation in China," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 184-196.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Qinghua Zhang & Heng-fu Zou, 2012. "Regional Inequality in Contemporary China," Annals of Economics and Finance, Society for AEF, vol. 13(1), pages 113-137, May.
    2. Celine Bonnefond, 2014. "Growth Dynamics And Conditional Convergence Among Chinese Provinces: A Panel Data Investigation Using System Gmm Estimator," Journal of Economic Development, Chung-Ang Unviersity, Department of Economics, vol. 39(4), pages 1-25, December.
    3. Iris Claus & Les Oxley & Chen Wang & Guanghua Wan & Dan Yang, 2014. "Income Inequality In The People'S Republic Of China: Trends, Determinants, And Proposed Remedies," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(4), pages 686-708, September.
    4. Mohsen Momenitabar & Zhila Dehdari Ebrahimi & Mohammad Arani, 2020. "A Systematic and Analytical Review of the Socioeconomic and Environmental Impact of the Deployed High-Speed Rail (HSR) Systems on the World," Papers 2003.04452, arXiv.org, revised Mar 2020.
    5. (Ato) Xu, Wangtu & Zhou, Jiangping & Yang, Linchuan & Li, Ling, 2018. "The implications of high-speed rail for Chinese cities: Connectivity and accessibility," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 308-326.
    6. Xiaolei Qian & Russell Smyth, 2006. "Growth Accounting for the Chinese Provinces 1990-2000: Incorporating Human Capital Accumulation," Journal of Chinese Economic and Business Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 4(1), pages 21-37.
    7. Wai Choi Lee & Tsun Se Cheong & Yanrui Wu & Jianxin Wu, 2019. "The Impacts of Financial Development, Urbanization, and Globalization on Income Inequality: A Regression-based Decomposition Approach," Asian Economic Papers, MIT Press, vol. 18(2), pages 126-141, Summer.
    8. 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.
    9. Sylvie Démurger & Jeffrey D. Sachs & Wing Thye Woo & Shuming Bao & Gene Chang & Andrew Mellinger, 2002. "Geography, Economic Policy, and Regional Development in China," Asian Economic Papers, MIT Press, vol. 1(1), pages 146-197.
    10. Jing Li & Tsun Se Cheong & Jianfa Shen & Dahai Fu, 2019. "Urbanization And Rural–Urban Consumption Disparity: Evidence From China," The Singapore Economic Review (SER), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 64(04), pages 983-996, September.
    11. Kailei Wei & Shujie Yao & Aying Liu, 2007. "Foreign direct investment and regional inequality in China," Discussion Papers 07/32, University of Nottingham, GEP.
    12. Tsun Se Cheong & Yanrui Wu, 2013. "Globalization and Regional Inequality," Economics Discussion / Working Papers 13-10, The University of Western Australia, Department of Economics.
    13. Jones, Derek C. & Li, Cheng & Owen, Ann L., 2003. "Growth and regional inequality in China during the reform era," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 14(2), pages 186-200.
    14. Thomas Gries & Margarete Redlin, 2008. "International Integration and Regional Development in China," WIDER Working Paper Series RP2008-66, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    15. Guangdong Li & Chuanglin Fang, 2014. "Analyzing the multi-mechanism of regional inequality in China," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 52(1), pages 155-182, January.
    16. Liu, Liwen & Zhang, Ming, 2018. "High-speed rail impacts on travel times, accessibility, and economic productivity: A benchmarking analysis in city-cluster regions of China," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 25-40.
    17. Yuxiang Wang & Xueli Liu & Feng Wang, 2018. "Economic Impact of the High-Speed Railway on Housing Prices in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(12), pages 1-21, December.
    18. Tian, Xu & Zhang, Xiaoheng & Zhou, Yingheng & Yu, Xiaohua, 2016. "Regional income inequality in China revisited: A perspective from club convergence," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 50-58.
    19. Chi-Wei Su & Hsu-Ling Chang, 2013. "Is income converging in China?," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 21(2), pages 341-356, April.
    20. Peng Zhang & Mann Xu, 2011. "The View from the County: China's Regional Inequalities of Socio-Economic Development," Annals of Economics and Finance, Society for AEF, vol. 12(1), pages 183-198, May.

    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:jotrge:v:65:y:2017:i:c:p:80-91. 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: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-transport-geography .

    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.