Time-Space Compression Effect of High-Speed Rail on Tourist Destinations in China

Abstract

This study proposes a time-space compression (TSC) model and evaluates the TSC effect of high-speed rail (HSR) on a sample of 2662 classified tourist destinations from 2008 to 2019 in China with the help of GIS technology. Based on panel models, this study finds that, within five hours: (1) the TSC effect of HSR on tourist destinations in eastern and central China is three times stronger than that in western and north-eastern China; (2) the negative impact coefficient of TSC of HSR on tourist destination development in China within temporal distances (3 h, 4 h, 5 h) are −0.193, −0.117, and −0.091 respectively; and (3) the farther the temporal distance, the weaker the inhibitory effect. Results from this study contribute to the literature by providing empirical evidence of the potentially negative TSC effect on regional and tourism development. Findings provide managerial implications suggesting that tourist destinations should implement marketing policies to retain tourists and prevent the loss of tourists brought by the opening of HSR.