The Relationship between Transportation Industry Efficiency, Transportation Structure, and Regional Sustainability Development in China: Based on DEA and PVAR Models

Abstract

The sustainable development of the transportation industry has always been a major concern after China’s reform and opening up. Existing studies only examine the transportation efficiency of a single mode of transportation or a certain region without considering the overall efficiency of the national transportation industry. Furthermore, most studies do not consider the impact of transportation structure on transportation efficiency and economic development. Moreover, the correlations and interactions between transportation efficiency, transportation structure, and regional economic development have not been considered. Based on the research status, this study uses a panel vector autoregressive model to analyze the relationship between the three. The results show that the transportation efficiency value is the highest in the eastern region, followed by the central region, and it is the lowest in the western region. The equilibrium degree of transportation structure has a slight difference in the national transportation structure from 2011 to 2020, and the proportion of major transportation modes in each province is unchanged. The correlation of the three variables is as follows: (1) transportation efficiency and transportation structure have a mutually reinforcing effect in the short term; (2) regional economic development has a long-term contribution to transportation efficiency and structure improvement; and (3) the level of transportation efficiency plays a leading role in regional economic development. According to the empirical analysis results, this study puts forward relevant feasible suggestions for the decision makers who formulate the development policies of the transportation industry in order to optimize the structure, reduce resource waste, improve the service quality of various transportation modes, and promote the high-quality, sustainable development of the transportation industry and economy.