Governance Mechanism of Urban Rail Transit PPP Projects in the Formal Institutional Context: A Social Network Analysis Approach

In the governance practice of urban rail transit PPP projects, there is a problem that the level of governance is not compatible with the development of the project, and it is necessary to improve the level of governance by improving the governance performance of the project. This study uses social network analysis to explore the effects of contractual governance, relational governance and formal institutional environment on the governance performance of urban rail transport PPP projects. The results show that the core elements of PPP project governance mechanisms are closely interrelated. Among them, performance norms, cooperation, system implementation norms, and institutional system perfection are key nodes in influencing the project governance performance, but these key nodes cannot completely control the other elements, so a balanced governance strategy should be implemented to strengthen the synergy between contractual governance, relational governance, and formal institutional environment, so as to ensure that the government and social capital can cooperate efficiently and intensively, and thereby effectively enhance the level of project governance performance.