Impact of competition between high-speed rail and civil aviation on urban economic growth

Fierce competition between China's high-speed railway (HSR) and civil aviation (CA) in the passenger transportation market is unprecedented in other countries. This study constructs the competition network between HSR and CA based on “train schedule” and “flight schedule,” analyzes their spatial competition pattern and level, and explores the impact of their competition level on urban economic growth. We find that the scale of the competition network of HSR and CA is expanding, with a spatial pattern decreasing from east-central to the west and expanding from “center city” to “edge city”; the competition level changes with the geographic distance in an “inverted U″ shape, and the competition is the most intense in the 700–1300 km zone. In terms of spatial distribution, the dominant lines of HSR are characterized by geographical proximity, while the distribution of CA dominant lines is more scattered; the advantageous lines of HSR are mainly located in the southeast of the “Hu Line,” while the advantageous lines of CA are characterized by the “rhombus” structure centered on Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu; the fiercely competitive routes show a “star-shaped network” distribution with Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Xi'an, and Guiyang as the core nodes. Furthermore, we find that competition between the two has promoted urban economic growth with a more pronounced impact on cities with better economic conditions at the two terminals.