The Impact of High-Speed Railway Infrastructure on Regional Economy

This paper explores the impact of China Railway High-speed (CRH) station construction on prefecture-level cities in terms of regional economic and spatial heterogeneity. Based on a generalized Difference-in-Differences (DID) model applied to panel data for 218 cities from 2008 to 2016, the study estimates the causal effects of CRH infrastructure on local GDP. To strengthen robustness by taking into consideration potential selection bias and heterogeneity of treatment effects, the Callaway and Sant'Anna Difference-in-Differences (CSDID) model is employed, utilizing staggered treatment timing and propensity-score re-weighting. A Difference-in-Difference-in-Differences (DDD) model is also used to explore how the distance to regional economic centers influences the economic impact of CRH stations. Results show that there are positive economic impacts of CRH construction, with GDP gains increasing over time. However, these economic gains are not evenly distributed, favoring cities located near regional economic centers. These findings point to the need for targeted regional policy to promote equitable economic development stemmed from high-speed rail construction.