Chinese Mega Research Articles

Factor decomposition analysis of urban transport CO2 emissions in Chinese mega cities: case study of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen

Factor decomposition analysis of urban transport CO2 emissions in Chinese mega cities: case study of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen

CHINA’S BELT AND ROAD INITIATIVE: THE CONCERNS AND RESPONSE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION

As the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) gains traction in transnational connectivity and infrastructure development, it meets increasing opposition from Western countries. Generally, It is viewed in the US-led Western world as an alternative form of globalization involving the leading role of China and increased participation of the Eastern powers. China’s engagement in the development of regional infrastructures under BRI and its economic and political ramifications have raised concerns in the West, including the European Union (EU). Economic concerns and prospective political ramifications connected with China’s grand initiative tend to shape the EU’s sceptical approach towards BRI. The EU is alarmed by the expansion of the BRI not only in Europe but also in other world regions. Despite regional connectivity being a common interest of the EU and China, the former’s sceptical approach towards BRI calls for an in-depth examination of the phenomenon. This paper explains the factors that account for the EU’s sceptical approach vis-à-vis the BRI and evaluates its response to the Chinese mega project

A Branch-and-Price Algorithm for Large-Scale Multidepot Electric Bus Scheduling

Electric buses (e-buses) are increasingly adopted in the transit systems for their benefits of reduced roadside pollution and better onboard experience. E-bus scheduling is a critical problem in the operation planning stage of transit management to ensure efficient and reliable transit service. In Chinese mega cities, the e-bus networks are operated with many bus routes characterized by high service frequency and long operation time, making the e-bus scheduling a large-scale problem. Besides, the transit agency requires the vehicle-depot constraint to limit the e-bus reposition since it is not cost-efficient. An efficient method to generate optimized schedules that meet the above requirements is desired by the transit agencies. In this paper, we address a large-scale multi-depot electric bus scheduling problem considering the vehicle-depot constraint and partial recharging policy. A mixed integer programming model and an efficient branch-and-price (BP) algorithm are developed to solve the problem. In the BP algorithm, we devise a heuristic method to generate good initial solutions and adopted heuristic decisions in the label setting algorithm to solve the pricing problem. In this way, the efficiency of the BP algorithm is achieved and the large-sized problem instances can be solved. We conduct extensive numerical experiments based on the fixed-route and multi-route operation cases in Shenzhen. The results show that the BP algorithm can generate provable high-quality solutions. Sensitivity analysis indicates that increasing battery capacity and charging rate can reduce the operational cost. The optimal charging schedules can also provide guide in determining the capacity of the charging facilities.

Towards niche market for shared mobility: Identifying heterogeneity of potential early adopters to use shared electric bikes in a Chinese mega city

Shared mobility endures the pandemic, legislative upheaval, and points to a sizable potential market with wider range of shared services. As the shared mobility segment worldwide continually increases, a noticeable trend towards segmentation of shared mobility services, namely, the niche market, is gaining attention. However, the majority of scholarship has mainly focused on early adopters’ transition from conventional transportation modes to shared mobility, with little attention given to the shift towards specialized and niche shared mobility services. To address such gap, this study aims to explore the heterogeneous characteristics of potential early adopters of shared electric bikes among different transportation groups in the existing market. The questionnaire targets 1,034 citizens living in Shenzhen, a mega city in China, from March to April in 2020, before the official launch of the shared electric bikes scheme in the city. Both binary logistic models and text sentiment analysis have been conducted to present a comprehensive analytical framework to understand the group-sensitive identification of potential early adopters. Results reveal that age, car ownership, commute time, and confidence level on the potential scheme are four significant variables to explain all respondents’ willingness to adopt shared electric bikes, regardless of their existing dominant transport mode. However, when it comes to subgroups with different travel preferences, the profile of potential early adopters vary distinctly. Specifically, younger public transport users are interested in adopting shared electric bikes but have price concerns; gender is the most significant variable to predict private vehicle user’s adopt willingness, and female user show strong concerns on safety issue; users who primarily walk or cycle can benefit from shared electric bikes to travel longer distances, and lastly, there are no significant variables to predict electric bike users’ intention to switch from self-owned bikes to shared programmes. Overall, an analytical framework is presented in the study to comprehend the diverse features of prospective early adopters who may utilize shared electric bikes from different transportation groups, and a collection of development strategies for operators is proposed.

Delineating functional urban areas in Chinese mega city regions using fine-grained population data and cellphone location data: A case of Pearl River Delta

A functional urban area (FUA) is composed of nearby physical urban areas that have intense functional connections or linkages. This notion gains increasing popularity in recent decades. Like in many other developing countries, no official definition of FUAs exists in China despite a few scholarly attempts. The present study extends the literature by developing a novel method based upon fine-grained population data and cellphone location data to delineate FUAs in China. At a spatial unit of 1 km grid cells, the fine-grained population data are used to infer population density to identify core areas of FUAs. Thereafter, cellphone location data are used to infer commuting flows to identify periphery areas that are economically integrated with the core areas. Using 9 prefecture-level cities in the Pearl River Delta of southern China as a case study, a total of 26 FUAs are identified. The robustness of FUA delineation is validated based on three criteria, namely sensitivity, realisticness, and compactness. The present study unravels that prefecture-level cities in China are not good representation of FUAs. Some of the prefecture-level cities have multiple FUAs that are functionally separate from each other, while some FUAs may surpass the administrative borders and be shared by two or more prefecture-level cities. Through the empirical case, the present study contributes a rigorous method to delineate FUAs that is not affected by the spatial configuration of administrative boundaries at any scales, which can facilitate more precise understanding of regional spatial interactions and more effective measures in regional governance.

South Korea’s Policy towards China’s “Belt and Road Initiative”: Implications for India

China’s “Belt and Road Initiative” (BRI) is being projected as one of the biggest infrastructure and connectivity projects of the 21st century. This Chinese mega project has evoked varied responses from the Asian nations. South Korea (hereafter Korea) which is the fourth biggest economy in Asia and an important trade partner of India has been supportive of the BRI, as this strategy is compatible with Seoul’s own vision of increased connectivity with the Eurasian market, capital, labor and resources, and is conducive to the promotion of Korean national reunification. On the other hand, India has been opposed to the BRI as it overlooks New Delhi’s sovereignty concerns and serves China’s geopolitical interests. Also, India has been supporting the “Indo-Pacific strategy” along with the United States, Japan and Australia to counter China’s rising hegemony in the region. As a result, Korea and India have different views on the BRI. This article aims to conduct an analysis of Korea’s policy towards China’s BRI which could have detrimental implications for India and argues that there is a need to take some serious measures to improve Korea-India relations in the coming times.

From cities to super mega city regions in China in a new wave of urbanisation and economic transition: Issues and challenges

A mega city region comprises a cluster of highly networked urban settlements anchored by one or more large cities. Substantial studies have been conducted in the 21st century to theorise the development of mega city regions from two perspectives: one focuses on the rationale/challenges of planning and governance while the other focuses on the economic forces that generate the mega city regions. In China, the outstanding position of mega city regions in China’s economic development has been accentuated in both academic research and recent policies. Recent studies have unpacked the political dynamics of mega city regions in China and identified challenges for planning and governance. The present study approaches this issue through another theoretical lens and deciphers the economic process underneath the recent upsurge of Chinese mega city regions. By unfolding the economic transition since the late 1970s to trace the footprints of mega city region development, the paper contributes a discourse of how different waves of economic transition – that is, rural industrialisation, land-centred development and urban tertiarisation – have been steering individual cities towards super mega city regions. The paper also identifies the distinctive challenges confronting the future development of China’s mega city regions, including jurisdictional fragmentation, socio-spatial inequality and environmental externalities, which were created because of the strong bottom-up initiatives in land development during rural industrialisation. New policies and planning are required in response to these challenges as well as to the emerging new industries in the new wave of economic transition (i.e. from labour-intensive industries to the development of high-tech industries).

Geopolitical Aspects of China’s «One Belt, One Way» International Initiative

Today, almost all areas of economic and social cooperation between China and the countries of Asia, Europe, Africa and Latin America are designated as part of the One Belt, One Way Initiative. The Belt and Path Initiative is a Chinese mega project of international scope, launched in 2013, which includes a huge number of participants and requires huge funding. The initiative is given a very large weight and expect a lot from him. Undoubtedly, the ultimate goal of China – to become the most powerful nation in the world. And yet this is not a hegemonic dream, but a dream of Confucian character, which emphasizes a peaceful, consultative and generally accepted approach to building a harmonious world. China’s initiative and all efforts to strengthen international cooperation not only contribute to the development of the Chinese economy and strengthen its global status, but also help to stabilize theworld economic and political situation. The proposed paper considers the strategy of the initiative «Onebelt, one path» and analyzes its geopolitical aspects, with attention being paid to the role and place ofKazakhstan in the Belt initiative and path. The authors note that despite the fact that in five years theinitiative has made significant progress, it is still difficult to estimate the true value and expected results,and the effectiveness of the international project will depend on internal factors of China’s policy, alsoon external factors.Key words: initiative «One belt-one way», strategy, geopolitics, China, Kazakhstan, cooperation.

Human activities and urban air pollution in Chinese mega city: An insight of ozone weekend effect in Beijing

Ozone pollution has become a major environmental concern in China, especially in mega cities with intensified human activities, which can impact air quality and human health. This study explores the different characteristics of ozone and ozone weekend effect (OWE) in different seasons in places (e.g. urban center, inner urban areas, suburban areas and natural background areas) with different degree of urbanization and intensity of human activities and the effect of urbanization on ozone at different scales in Beijing. The annual daily average ozone concentration in Beijing was 56μg/m3, with the maximum of 98.0 μg/m3 occurred in summer and the minimum of 27 μg/m3 in winter. Spatially, annual daily average ozone concentration increased along the urban-rural gradient. The annual ozone concentration was 6% higher at weekend than that on weekdays. Seasonally, the ozone concentration on weekend was 18% higher than that on workdays in summer, 4% in autumn, and 10% in winter, but was 10% lower in spring, indicating that the ozone production regime in different seasons could be different. Influence of urbanization on OWE varied by scale. At the city scale, OWE was more pronounced in urban centers than suburban areas, but at the local scale, OWE tended to decrease with the increase degree of urbanization.

Aging and social security system in Pakistan: policy challenges, opportunities, and role of China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC)

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this research is to highlight the aging and elderly care in Pakistan, a country considered the seventh most populous country in the world with an estimated population of 220 million people (citation, 2017). In 2013, Pakistan signed a MoU with China for 56 billion in US$ to create opportunities for the youngsters, but there was no story of opportunity included for the senior citizens. An attempt has been made to raise awareness of the plight of seniors to the Pakistan Government’s attention; however since there is no formal policy dedicated to elders from the Chinese mega MoU and political instability, only little has been accomplished to better the lives of older adults. Modernization has had a major impact on the life of older Pakistani, and not always a positive effect. This research focuses on the important issues that are making the lives of senior citizens more difficult. The issues include psychological factors, anxiety, physical issues, and environmental issues. The research concludes while many factors are making the lives of senior citizens problematic, seniors are still living a satisfied life because they are not depending on their children or others. Senior citizens demand and desire time with their children and grandchildren. Increases found in elders’ psychological problems are likely correlated with modernization. Unfortunately, the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and the mega project remain totally for the younger population with no economic prospects for elders to directly benefit. Thus, the question remains what will be the outcome for Pakistani seniors?

Prospects for air policy liberalization in China as a Result of China-ASEAN Open Skies: Changing role of Chinese mega carriers in global scene and anticipated Low Cost Carrier competition

The objective of this study is to predict the direction of change in China's airline policy in the next decade. This is done by (a) reviewing performance of Chinese mega airlines and predicting their changing global role which will have strong influence on Chinese air policy; (b) changing role of airline industry in the modern economy; and (c) impacts of South East Asian LCCs' penetration into a large number of Chinese major cities enabled by the recent China-ASEAN Open Skies Agreement, and its anticipated impacts on China's LCC policy. Our analysis led us to conclude that if China's air policy makers encourage 80 + major cities to initiate made-in-China LCCs, it would solve the looming short-term policy disaster (losing the majority of China-ASEAN markets to SE Asian LCCs); help solve an important medium-term policy goal of inducing Chinese mega carriers to get more efficient vs. competing foreign carriers; and the long-term need for preparing China's mega carriers to claim the global leadership roles such as setting standards on the global civil air transport sector. Such policy will also better serve both consumers and the Chinese economy as a whole as the more efficient and convenient air services would help tourism, international trade sectors that airlines need to support, in order to maximize its total contribution to the Chinese economy.

Tracking carbon transfers embodied in Chinese municipalities' domestic and foreign trade

Abstract Cities are the major contributors to global carbon dioxide emissions; however, the carbon transfers embodied in cities' domestic and foreign trade have not been fully discussed. As carbon emissions from different domestic and foreign trade partners have not been distinguished, and since China's four municipalities (Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai and Chongqing) carry an increasingly significant responsibility for carbon reduction in China, a multi-scale and multi-regional carbon emission assessment is applied to identify their emission transfers to and from 26 domestic provinces and 184 foreign economies. The results show that the intensities of the four municipalities are mainly above the international standard (0.14 kg/CNY) but beneath the Chinese average (0.24 kg/CNY). 71.72%, 55.35%, 65.34% and 33.65% of their emissions are imported from other regions. Generally, the four municipalities are net recipients of domestic carbon transfers and suppliers of foreign carbon transfers. Carbon transfers from Hebei to Beijing and Tianjin, Zhejiang to Shanghai, and Sichuan to Chongqing as well as from Beijing and Tianjin to Japan and South Korea and from Shanghai and Chongqing to the United States and Germany are identified in domestic and foreign supply chains. The multi-scale and multi-regional simulation and assessment in this work allows us to identify the carbon emissions not only within a city's boundaries but also via inter- and intra-national trade, providing a solid foundation for the carbon emission assessments of Chinese mega cities from an embodied perspective.

Characterization of Gas-Phase Organics Using Proton Transfer Reaction Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry: Residential Coal Combustion.

Residential coal combustion is a significant contributor to particulate urban air pollution in Chinese mega cities and some regions in Europe. While the particulate emission factors and the chemical characteristics of the organic and inorganic aerosol from coal combustion have been extensively studied, the chemical composition and nonmethane organic gas (NMOG) emission factors from residential coal combustion are mostly unknown. We conducted 23 individual burns in a traditional Chinese stove used for heating and cooking using five different coals with Chinese origins, characterizing the NMOG emissions using a proton transfer reaction time-of-flight mass spectrometer. The measured emission factors range from 1.5 to 14.1 g/kgcoal for bituminous coals and are below 0.1 g/kgcoal for anthracite coals. The emission factors from the bituminous coals are mostly influenced by the time until the coal is fully ignited. The emissions from the bituminous coals are dominated by aromatic and oxygenated aromatic compounds with a significant contribution of hydrocarbons. The results of this study can help to improve urban air pollution modeling in China and Eastern Europe and can be used to constrain a coal burning factor in ambient gas phase positive matrix factorization studies.

Car Ownership Control in Chinese Mega Cities: Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou

Three mega cities in China – Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangzhou – have implemented a unique quota policy to control car ownership growth. In this paper, we explore how special characteristics of China’s rapid urbanisation and motorisation contribute to the formulation of this unique policy. These cities, however, have adopted different policy designs. Auction, lottery and a hybrid of these two mechanisms are used in Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou respectively. We analyse the design, evolution and effectiveness of these policy measures. We also discuss how these measures can fit with an integrated transportation demand management policy.

Impacts of temperature and precipitation on the spatiotemporal distribution of water resources in Chinese mega cities: the case of Beijing

Abstract Water shortages in China have hindered development of mega cities, especially Beijing. Assessing the impact of temperature and precipitation on water resources is important. This study analyzed spatiotemporal variations and impacts of temperature and precipitation on water resources in Beijing from 1956 to 2013, using statistical and spatial analysis. The results showed the following. (1) Temperature and precipitation affect water resources variously from region to region; their correlation in mountains is lower than in other areas. Precipitation redistribution caused by terrain reduces water resources. (2) The inter-annual variabilities of precipitation, temperature and water resources are different among five water resource divisions. Because of ‘rain-slope’, Beisanhe's precipitation is larger than others; Yongdinghe's precipitation is less than others due to ‘rain-shadow’; suffering from urban heat island effect, Beisihe and Daqinghe-plain's temperature is higher than others; Beisanhe and Beisihe's water resources are greater than others due to area differences. (3) Water resources are positively correlated with precipitation and negatively with temperature. (4) In recent years, precipitation and water resources decreased and temperature rose. Population growth, land use/land cover change, urbanization and pollution affected precipitation, temperature and water resources. Imported water cannot completely solve water shortages. With increasing water demand, precipitation and temperature will significantly influence water resources in Beijing.

Rising residential rents in Chinese mega cities: The role of monetary policy

Although there have been a large number of studies carried out on fluctuations in housing prices, little is known about what causes changes in residential rents, which are inextricably intertwined with urban living standards. This is especially noteworthy in Chinese cities, which are now being challenged by the housing market frenzies. Shift-share analysis is proposed to evaluate all possible triggers of residential rent inflation in three cities during the 2001–2013 period, which covers two distinct monetary policy regimes in China. It is found that the recent rise in residential rent comes as a result of aggregate inflation associated with an expansionary monetary policy since the 2008 Global Financial Crisis and an all-encompassing and stable policy stance should therefore be adopted.

Interaction among real estate properties in China using three submarket panels

Although the heterogeneity of real estate property submarkets has been discussed in a number of studies, little is known about their actual relationship. The purpose of this work is therefore to explore the dynamic interaction among the residential, office and retail markets in China using data from six Chinese mega cities for the period from 2003 to 2014 to create three submarket panels. Through application of the panel co-integration test, it is shown that there is no long-run equilibrium among them, namely, the three property submarkets are not all driven by common fundamentals. More importantly, the panel causality test of the three submarket panel returns reveals that changes in the residential market lead to changes in the commercial market. We may thus conclude that China's authorities should place special emphasis on the residential market in order to restrain today's rising real estate prices.

Die Eiserne Seidenstraße

In May 2014, the Thai military staged a coup d’état and ousted the democratically elected Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. This coup, which marks the climax of the split between the Redshirt and Yellowshirt political camps, is difficult to explain solely in terms of inner Thai power relations. Instead the article argues that the Chinese mega infrastructure project one belt one road needs to be taken into account. This project is another major step in the rise of China – a process, which has often been seen as part of a hegemonic shift towards a new accumulation cycle with China as new center. Against this background, the present upheaval in Thailand is interpreted in a historical perspective and as one example for the kind of conflicts, which accompany the historic shift towards China as a new power center. However, the article also argues that the turn towards an autocratic form of governance can not be attributed to direct Chinese influence. Rather, it is the result of the fierce rivalry between two capitalist fractions and domestic factors.

Consumption-based CO2 accounting of China's megacities: The case of Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai and Chongqing

China has experienced rapid urbanization in the last three decades, with more than half of the population living in cities since 2012. The extent of urban production and urban lifestyles has become one of the main drivers for China's CO2 emissions. To analyze drivers of CO2 emissions we use a consumption-based accounting approach that allocates all emissions along the production chain to the product and place of final consumption, whereas a production-based approach would allocate all emissions to the place of origin. In this study, we focus on the spatial distribution of production activities leading to CO2 emissions across China as a consequence of final consumption in four Chinese mega cities: Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, and Chongqing. Urban consumption not only causes a large amount of emissions within its territory, but also imposes even much more emissions to its surrounding provinces via interregional supply chains. Results show that more than 48% of CO2 emissions related to goods consumed in Chongqing and more than 70% for Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin occurred outside of the respective city boundary. In addition to the usual focus on efficiency, our analysis adds insights into the causes of CO2 emissions by looking at the drivers and types of consumption. Addressing consumption patterns in China's cities is critical for China's low carbon development.

Vertical characteristics of carbonaceous species and their source contributions in a Chinese mega city

In this work, two new chemical mass balance (CMB) models were applied to estimate the possible source contributions to organic carbon (OC) and the secondary OC (SOC) concentrations in PM10 at 10, 40, 120 and 220 m heights on a meteorological tower in Tianjin. The OC and EC (elemental carbon) were simultaneously measured at the four heights from 24 August to 12 September 2009. The vertical characteristics of OC and EC showed a general decreasing trend with the increasing height. The SOC concentrations were then estimated by the minimum OC/EC ratio method, the NCPCRCMB model and the CMB-Iteration method. The results suggest increasing trends for SOC/TOC and SOC/PM10 up the tower. Additionally, wind rose maps and hourly 72-h back trajectory cluster maps were combined with the source apportionment results to discuss the vertical source contributions to OC, indicating that the percentage contributions of long-range transport sources (such as soil dust and SOC sources) increased with height. SOC formation and transportation by wind affected OC more strongly than each primary source at greater heights. Finally, the levels and sources of the excess OC (the difference between OC concentrations at lower heights to that at 220 m) are discussed. The results suggest that it is more effectively managed for reducing OC to control vehicle and coal sources at the ground level in Tianjin. Information about the more significant sources of excess OC can be used for the development of effective control strategies.