IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/transb/v60y2014icp33-49.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Effects of high-speed rail and airline cooperation under hub airport capacity constraint

Author

Listed:
  • Jiang, Changmin
  • Zhang, Anming

Abstract

This paper analyzes the effects of cooperation between a hub-and-spoke airline and a high-speed rail (HSR) operator when the hub airport may be capacity-constrained. We find that such cooperation reduces traffic in markets where prior modal competition occurs, but may increase traffic in other markets of the network. The cooperation improves welfare, independent of whether or not the hub capacity is constrained, as long as the modal substitutability in the overlapping markets is low. However, if the modal substitutability is high, then hub capacity plays an important role in assessing the welfare impact: If the hub airports are significantly capacity-constrained, the cooperation improves welfare; otherwise, it is likely welfare reducing. Through simulations we further study the welfare effects of modal asymmetries in the demands and costs, heterogeneous passenger types, and economies of traffic density. Our analysis shows that the economies of traffic density alone cannot justify airline–HSR cooperation.

Suggested Citation

  • 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.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:transb:v:60:y:2014:i:c:p:33-49
    DOI: 10.1016/j.trb.2013.12.002
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S019126151300221X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

    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. Meunier, David & Quinet, Emile, 2012. "Applications of transport economics and imperfect competition," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(1), pages 19-29.
    2. Ken Hendricks & Michele Piccione & Guofu Tan, 1995. "The Economics of Hubs: The Case of Monopoly," Review of Economic Studies, Oxford University Press, vol. 62(1), pages 83-99.
    3. Olivier Armantier & Oliver Richard, 2008. "Domestic airline alliances and consumer welfare," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 39(3), pages 875-904, September.
    4. Brander, James A. & Zhang, Anming, 1993. "Dynamic oligopoly behaviour in the airline industry," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 11(3), pages 407-435, September.
    5. Jan K. Brueckner & Nichola J. Dyer & Pablo T. Spiller, 1992. "Fare Determination in Airline Hub-and-Spoke Networks," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 23(3), pages 309-333, Autumn.
    6. 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.
    7. De Rus Ginés, 2011. "The BCA of HSR: Should the Government Invest in High Speed Rail Infrastructure?," Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis, De Gruyter, vol. 2(1), pages 1-28, January.
    8. Adler, Nicole & Pels, Eric & Nash, Chris, 2010. "High-speed rail and air transport competition: Game engineering as tool for cost-benefit analysis," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 44(7), pages 812-833, August.
    9. Bamberger, Gustavo E & Carlton, Dennis W & Neumann, Lynette R, 2004. "An Empirical Investigation of the Competitive Effects of Domestic Airline Alliances," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 47(1), pages 195-222, April.
    10. Braeutigam, Ronald R & Daughety, Andrew F & Turnquist, Mark A, 1984. "A Firm Specific Analysis of Economies of Density in the U.S. Railroad Industry," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(1), pages 3-20, September.
    11. Brueckner, Jan K & Whalen, W Tom, 2000. "The Price Effects of International Airline Alliances," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 43(2), pages 503-545, October.
    12. 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.
    13. Brueckner, Jan K. & Spiller, Pablo T., 1991. "Competition and mergers in airline networks," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 9(3), pages 323-342, September.
    14. David Gillen & David Levinson & Jean Michel Mathieu & Adib Kanafani, 1997. "The full cost of high-speed rail: an engineering approach," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 31(2), pages 189-215.
    15. Graham, Daniel J. & Couto, Antonio & Adeney, William E. & Glaister, Stephen, 2003. "Economies of scale and density in urban rail transport: effects on productivity," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 39(6), pages 443-458, November.
    16. Brueckner, Jan K & Spiller, Pablo T, 1994. "Economies of Traffic Density in the Deregulated Airline Industry," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 37(2), pages 379-415, October.
    17. Tae Hoon Oum & Anming Zhang & Yimin Zhang, 1995. "Airline Network Rivalry," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 28(4a), pages 836-857, November.
    18. Zhang, Anming & Zhang, Yimin, 2006. "Rivalry between strategic alliances," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 24(2), pages 287-301, March.
    19. Czerny, Achim I. & Zhang, Anming, 2011. "Airport congestion pricing and passenger types," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 45(3), pages 595-604, March.
    20. Harumi Ito & Darin Lee, 2007. "Domestic Code Sharing, Alliances, and Airfares in the U.S. Airline Industry," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 50, pages 355-380.
    21. Per Kageson, 2009. "Environmental Aspects of Inter-City Passenger Transport," OECD/ITF Joint Transport Research Centre Discussion Papers 2009/28, OECD Publishing.
    22. 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.
    23. Philip G. Gayle, 2008. "An Empirical Analysis of the Competitive Effects of the Delta/Continental/Northwest Code-Share Alliance," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 51(4), pages 743-766, November.
    24. Brueckner, Jan K., 2001. "The economics of international codesharing: an analysis of airline alliances," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 19(10), pages 1475-1498, December.
    25. 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.
    26. JA. Clougherty, 2000. "US domestic airline alliances: does the national welfare impact turn on strategic international gains?," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 18(3), pages 304-314, July.
    27. Socorro, M. Pilar & Viecens, M. Fernanda, 2013. "The effects of airline and high speed train integration," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 160-177.
    28. Givoni, Moshe & Banister, David, 2006. "Airline and railway integration," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 13(5), pages 386-397, September.
    29. Behrens, Christiaan & Pels, Eric, 2012. "Intermodal competition in the London–Paris passenger market: High-Speed Rail and air transport," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 71(3), pages 278-288.
    30. James A. Brander & Anming Zhang, 1990. "Market Conduct in the Airline Industry: An Empirical Investigation," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 21(4), pages 567-583, Winter.
    31. Campos, Javier & de Rus, Ginés, 2009. "Some stylized facts about high-speed rail: A review of HSR experiences around the world," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 16(1), pages 19-28, January.
    32. Park, Yonghwa & Ha, Hun-Koo, 2006. "Analysis of the impact of high-speed railroad service on air transport demand," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 42(2), pages 95-104, March.
    33. Douglas W. Caves & Laurits R. Christensen & Michael W. Tretheway, 1984. "Economies of Density versus Economies of Scale: Why Trunk and Local Service Airline Costs Differ," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 15(4), pages 471-489, Winter.
    34. Sichelschmidt, H., 1999. "The EU programme "trans-European networks"--a critical assessment," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 6(3), pages 169-181, July.
    35. Bilotkach, Volodymyr, 2007. "Complementary versus semi-complementary airline partnerships," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 41(4), pages 381-393, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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:transb:v:60:y:2014:i:c:p:33-49. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: (Dana Niculescu). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/548/description#description .

    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 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.

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

    IDEAS is a RePEc service hosted by the Research Division of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis . RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.