Redai dili (Jul 2023)
A Multi-Scenario-Oriented Study on the Impact of Regional Spatial Equity and Efficiency of Intercity Railways: A Case Study of the Shenzhen-Dongguan-Huizhou Region
Abstract
Intercity rail planning and construction generates improved regional accessibility and contributes to changes in the spatial organization of the region, incorporating more areas into the 'integrated corridor economy' through the increased attractiveness of new connection locations in a dynamic process involving multi-level impacts in social and economic domains. In addition, the development of areas outside the intercity rail corridor could also be altered by new intercity rail plans; these improvements, often referred to as efficiency impacts, are mainly related to accessibility benefits. Traditional assessment methods do not address the conflicts between efficiency and equity concerns. Achieving a single efficiency objective would bias intercity rail planning towards providing efficient connections between major centers of economic activity, negatively impacting spatial equity as it would lead to polarized spatial development patterns. Equity considerations are receiving increasing attention in current regional transport planning studies, in which intercity rail planning needs to maximize economic growth while maintaining an acceptable level of equity. We divided the scenarios based on different stages of intercity railway planning and construction, built the model of spatial equity and efficiency, adopted weighted average travel time, potential accessibility, and coefficient of variation as evaluation indexes, and conducted an empirical analysis of the changes in spatial equity and efficiency in the Shenzhen-Dongguan-Huizhou region under the scenarios of no intercity railway, current intercity railway, and planned intercity railway, to discuss the development of an equitable and efficient regional spatial model through intercity railway planning and construction. The findings indicate that: Firstly, the planning of intercity railways in Shenzhen-Dongguan-Huizhou region effectively promotes the overall improvement of accessibility, and the economic development potential of the areas along the routes is much higher than that of areas not located along the routes. Secondly, the core growth poles of Shenzhen-Dongguan-Huizhou region continue to be reinforced, and the planning of intercity railways significantly increases the economic radiation capacity of Shenzhen; however, the imbalance of regional development increases concurrently. Thirdly, the spatial equity layout of the Shenzhen-Dongguan-Huizhou region is characterized by a high level in the central and western areas and a low level in the two wings under the influence of the intercity railway plan, with the western coastal area of Dongguan and the northeastern part of Huizhou gaining inferior benefits. Lastly, the intercity railway plan has led to a more balanced pattern of economic linkages in the Shenzhen-Dongguan-Huizhou region, with a greater enhancement of spatial equity in areas close to Shenzhen. In general, the difference in the accessibility of the intercity railways in the Shenzhen-Dongguan-Huizhou region is significantly associated with factors related to the direct connection with the intercity railways and the location in contact with the core areas. The time-space compression effect produced by the construction of intercity railways has led to the expansion of the radiation range of the regional hinterland of the Shenzhen-Dongguan-Huizhou region, thus achieving optimal regional spatial distribution. In addition to enhancing the economic benefits of the transport network, the Shenzhen-Dongguan-Huizhou region should also take into account the equity of resource allocation and promote sustainable optimization as well as a balanced development of the spatial structure.
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