The impacts of high-speed railway on environmental sustainability: quasi-experimental evidence from China

Abstract

With growing concerns over resource depletion and environmental degradation, the role of high-speed railways in fostering a transition towards sustainable energy sources has gained prominence. Against this background, we treat the opening of high-speed railways as a quasi-natural study, analyze data from Chinese industrial enterprises and 285 prefecture-level cities to investigate the impact of high-speed railways on environmental sustainability, specifically focusing on fossil fuel consumption and carbon emissions. Our results unequivocally demonstrate that the introduction of high-speed railways has been instrumental in promoting eco-friendly development, as evidenced by a notable reduction in traditional resource consumption and carbon emissions along the railway routes. This inhibitory effect has strengthened over time and with increasing distance from the railway. Additionally, we identify significant spatial spillover and spatial conduction effects resulting from high-speed railway operations. Heterogeneity tests reveal that third-tier cities, non-megacities, and mature resource-based cities are particularly receptive to these sustainable impacts. Besides, Mechanism analysis suggests that accelerated elements flow, enhanced technological innovation, improved labor productivity, and upgrading of industrial structure serve as potential pathways leading to eco-sustainability. These findings highlight the environmentally friendly attributes of high-speed railways and underscore the pressing need for effective policy measures to facilitate a global transition towards renewable energy, both in China and worldwide.

All aboard? An analysis of public opinion regarding high‐speed rail

“…Proponents of high-speed rail say it is an efficient, reliable, and environmentally friendly way to travel (High-Speed Rail 2015;Shen, Pan, and Feng 2023). China overwhelmingly has the most lines of highspeed rail track with more than 19,000 miles in operation, followed by Japan with 1890 and Spain with 1772.…”

Experimental Monitoring of Dynamic Parameters of the Sub-Ballast Layers as a Prerequisite for a High-Quality and Sustainable Railway Line

“…The analysis of the impact of technological innovation and modernization of railway infrastructure on ecological sustainability is presented in [19]. Methods of reducing the noise and vibration levels of railway transport to improve its environmental friendliness are presented in the publication [20].…”

High-Speed Railway Opening, Industrial Symbiotic Agglomeration and Green Sustainable Development—Empirical Evidence from China

“…In recent years, there has been a growing emphasis among scholars on the importance of transportation accessibility (connectivity) for regional economic development, surpassing the traditional focus on transportation infrastructure. They found that high-speed rail is an important driver of environmental sustainability [15] in both developing and developed countries [16], with climate conditions playing an important mediating role [7]. This shift in research focus has led to a deeper exploration of the subject [17,18].…”