Transport infrastructure development and changing spatial accessibility in the Greater Pearl River Delta, China, 1990-2020

Quan Hou*, Si Ming Li

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articlepeer-review

128 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

This paper analyses the accessibility implications of the development of expressways and inter-city railways in the Greater Pearl River Delta (GPRD) over the period 1990-2020. Average travel time was firstly reduced by expressway development; and it will be reduced further by the introduction of the inter-city rail system in 2011. The unevenness in regional accessibility remained relatively high during the initial stage of expressway development, but later expansion brought more balanced accessibility landscapes. The first stage (2010-2020) of inter-city railway development will raise the accessibility inequality. Its later effects, however, remain to be seen. Convenience in transport connections is associated with the spatial pattern of industrialization. In addition, accessibility improvement is tied to the direction of city-region development, as exemplified by Guangzhou's choice of Nansha, the city's outer port, as development focus.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1350-1360
Number of pages11
JournalJournal of Transport Geography
Volume19
Issue number6
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Nov 2011

Scopus Subject Areas

  • Geography, Planning and Development
  • Transportation
  • General Environmental Science

User-Defined Keywords

  • Accessibility
  • Expressways
  • Greater Pearl River Delta
  • Inter-city rail system
  • Intra-regional disparity

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