High-speed rail construction and urban innovation disparity in China: the role of internet development

Xuelu Xu and Mingbo Zheng ()
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Xuelu Xu: Shanghai Normal University
Mingbo Zheng: Chang’an University

Economic Change and Restructuring, 2023, vol. 56, issue 5, No 28, 3567-3599

Abstract: Abstract This paper aims to investigate the impact of high-speed rail (HSR) construction on urban innovation disparity and the role of internet development in this relationship. Using prefecture-level panel data spanning 2008–2020 in China and a difference-in-differences approach, we find that being connected to HSR networks significantly promotes urban innovation, which widens the innovation gap between HSR and non-HSR cities and leads to urban innovation disparity. We further find that internet development increases HSR cities’ innovation and hence results in a higher level of urban innovation disparity. Heterogeneity analyses reveal that HSR construction in cities with higher GDP, cities closer to the national central cities, cities in the south, and cities on the coast brings about greater innovation performance because of the higher level of internet development, which widens the urban innovation gap in different regions. We show that population migration and capital investment are two dominant channels through which HSR and internet development induce urban innovation disparity. Our findings extend previous works on the impact of HSR on regional innovation and provide deeper evidence of how HSR and the internet shape regional economic distribution.

Keywords: High-speed rail; Internet development; Urban innovation disparity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O3 R12 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1007/s10644-023-09542-4

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