Evaluating the Sustainability of the Olympic Transport System on the View of Regional Transport Development Pattern

Abstract

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) proposed that the host city should consider sustainable development from the Games’ beginning to end, and that the host city should make full use of the Olympic infrastructure even after the Games. However, a less systematic evaluation of their sustainability exists, especially for the roads. The new connections built for the Olympic Games cost the most and influenced the host city directly. We apply spatial design network analysis (sDNA) with exploratory spatial data analysis (ESDA) to evaluate the sustainability of the new connections built for the Olympics Games in the 2022 Winter Olympic Games. The results show that the Games encourage the host cities’ governments to work towards a common goal, and directly benefits Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei transport coordinated development. In “Edge cities”, such as Hengshui, Qinhuangdao, Cangzhou, and Zhangjiakou, traffic accessibility has been promoted dramatically. The foreground network of the region development moved northward, from “Beijing–Shijiazhuang–Baoding” to “Beijing–Tangshan–Qinhuangdao”. These findings can be used for policy design, to keep the new connections running with long-term stability, and to constantly create better economic effects.