Research On The Influence And Mechanism Of High-speed Rail On The Spatial Distribution Of Economic Activities

The interactive relationship between transportation and the spatial distribution of economic activities has become the focus of new economic geography and regional economics research.Since the 21^st century,the expansion of high-speed railway（HSR）network,as an important part of the building China’s strength in transportation,has a profound impact on China’s economic geography.It is of great importance and value both in theory and practice to comprehensively and systematically explore the impacts and mechanisms of the HSR,an efficient intercity passenger transportation,on the spatial distribution of economic activities.In addition,this dissertation helps to grasp the influence mechanism and market rules of the linkages between transportation and production factors such as population,land,and enterprise.First of all,based on the extended“core-periphery”analysis framework of the new economic geography,this dissertation subdivides the cross-city relocation cost of high-skilled labor into three parts:restrictive policies,job search and matching,and commuting costs.In addition,this paper conducts a theoretical analysis of the underlying mechanism by which HSR affects the spatial patterns of economic activities.Secondly,this research uses multi-dimensional time series spatial data to construct the measurement indicators of the spatial distribution of HSR and economic activities,including geocoded HSR lines and stations,nighttime light satellite imagery,land transaction records,and firm registration data.These indicators cover the three dimensions of land（one carrier of economic activity）,people and enterprise（two subjects of economic activity）.Finally,this dissertation quantitatively measures the opening effect and network effect of HSR on spatial patterns of population,land use,and agglomeration of enterprise based on a variety of econometric models,such as difference-in-differences（DID）model and two-stage least square（2SLS）estimation.Furthermore,this study explores the underlying channels of the causal effects of HSR.This dissertation concludes in the following empirical findings.Ceteris paribus,（1）HSR accelerates the urbanization of the population.After connecting to the HSR network,the urban areas of first-and second-tier cities have the largest population inflow,and the counties of small and medium-sized cities have the largest population outflow.（2）On average,HSR station generates a significant spatial spillover effect,and accelerates the urban spatial expansion.And this effect is significantly affected by factors such as urban economic outcomes,location of HSR station and airports,but has nothing to do with the floor space of HSR stations.（3）At the county level,the average unit price of residential and service land increases by 8%with HSR connection.After connecting to the HSR,metropolitan areas tend to supply more commercial land,while suburban counties in small and medium-sized cities increase the supply of residential land.This shows that the HSR exacerbates the spatial mismatch of papulation and land resources.（4）The HSR affects the spatial patterns of firms through population movement and land prices.More firms in the service sector cluster in urban districts due to HSR,while firms in the primary and manufacturing sectors move out to locations without HSR access.Specifically,for every 10%increase in the HSR-induced market access,the growth rate of firm number in the manufacturing sector decreases by 1.1%,while the growth rate of firm number in the service sector increases by 0.75%.Finally,this dissertation puts efforts to propose effective and targeted policy implications for the planning and location of HSR lines and stations,the spatial allocation of population and land resources,and the financial risks of“HSR New Town”project developers.