Competition between high-speed trains and air travel in China: From a spatial to spatiotemporal perspective

Abstract

Abstract Scheduling strategies are important to improve network efficiency and optimize time slots for both high-speed train (HST) and air travel. Although many scholars have studied HST and air travel competition from the perspectives of the spatial patterns and travel costs of the two transportation modes, few studies have investigated their potential temporal competition. To fill this research gap, this paper uses a time window method to examine the relationship between HSTs and flights operating between city-pairs. From the perspective of departure time, an analysis was conducted in the overlapping network of HSTs and flights at the city-pair level in China, based on one-day schedules. The results show that (1) HSTs and flights were temporally scheduled differently according to their within-day dynamics, and (2) HSTs and flights experienced fierce competition from 7 am to 9 am on average. Furthermore, the proposed classification method identifies city-pairs in a single-mode dominant market, full competition market, partial competition market, and complementary coordination market. Spatially, 24 city-pairs operating 343 flights with 533 train competitors in one day formed the full competition market with high-frequency schedules, including such city-pairs as Beijing-Shanghai, Guangzhou-Shanghai, and Shanghai-Xi’an. The method to classify city-pairs according to the similarity and diversity of HST and flight schedules may be generalized for allocating time slots for two modes. This work may help to schedule HSTs and flights in future transportation management.