The Impact of COVID-19 on High-Speed Rail and Aviation Operations

Shan Yang,Zhenhua Chen

doi:10.3390/su14031683

Abstract

Intercity transportation systems have experienced severe disruptions since the outbreak of COVID-19. However, it remains unclear how the operations of different systems were affected and whether the pandemic has influenced modal interaction. This paper provides an empirical assessment to address these questions using high-speed rail (HSR) and aviation in China as an example. The impact of COVID-19 on aviation and HSR operations was examined both temporally and spatially using a high-dimensional fixed-effect panel model. Using the big data with daily operational frequency for the period of January–June 2020, the study shows that the lockdown of Wuhan had varying effects on the operations of HSR and aviation. In addition, the correlation of operational services between HSR and aviation was found to vary both spatially and temporally during the pandemic. These research findings provide important implications for improving the adaptability of transportation systems and operational resilience.

Highlights

The severe acute respiratory syndrome caused by the coronavirus disease, COVID-19, has created severe socioeconomic consequences since its initial outbreak in Wuhan, China.In order to effectively control the spread of the virus, a series of epidemic prevention measures, such as travel bans and restrictions, social distancing, and centralized quarantine, were adopted by Chinese authorities [1,2,3]
We focus on the percentage changes of shares between high-speed rail (HSR) and aviation during the COVID-19 pandemic for the comparison instead of relying on the absolute number of passengers carried by the two transport modes, as it helps offset the unequal capacities between the two modes
The patterns show that the service frequency of HSR and aviation vary substantially between regions, which reflects the uneven demand for intercity transportation services

Summary

Introduction

The severe acute respiratory syndrome caused by the coronavirus disease, COVID-19, has created severe socioeconomic consequences since its initial outbreak in Wuhan, China.In order to effectively control the spread of the virus, a series of epidemic prevention measures, such as travel bans and restrictions, social distancing, and centralized quarantine, were adopted by Chinese authorities [1,2,3]. A strict lockdown was implemented in the city of Wuhan on 23 January, which was shortly followed by strict travel restrictions in other Chinese cities in order to curb the spread of the virus. The total railway passenger transport volume has decreased by. 39.8%, while the passenger transport turnover has reduced by 45.5% since the outbreak of COVID-19 when comparing the performance in 2020 and 2019. The total aviation passenger volume and passenger turnover have decreased by 36.7% and 46.1%, respectively [4]. The travel restrictions substantially reduced service frequency and the number of stops, and the economic losses as a result of the disruptions were far-reaching [5,6]

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Conclusion