基于国际公路运输链的“一带一路”区域公路通达性分析

国际公路运输作为“一带一路”倡议之互联互通的重要部分,是沿线国家经贸往来的重要载体。本文基于国际公路运输链的角度,结合行车时间和通关耗时,从公路通行能力和通行便捷性两方面分析“一带一路”区域公路通达性。研究表明：① “一带一路”区域公路通行能力分布状况存在不平衡现象,中东欧、中国、印度形成“三极”,通行能力明显高于其他区域,中亚、西亚、东北亚等地区由于公路覆盖率低、缺少高等级公路成为通行能力薄弱区域。② 受累积空间距离、跨境通关时间、公路网的完善程度以及政治局势等因素影响,“一带一路”区域通行便捷性在空间分布上大致呈现“中东欧-中国”双峰结构;区域之间乃至区域内部国家间通行便捷性差异显著,从高通行便捷性到低通行便捷性,通达时间由公路行车时间主导过渡到通关累积时间主导,国家间的通关障碍在很大程度上降低了“一带一路”区域公路运输整体通达性水平。

Analyzing the highway accessibility in the Belt and Road region based on international highway transport chain

As a vital part of the Belt and Road Initiative, international highway transport is an important carrier of economic and trade cooperation among the countries along the Belt and Road. Since the initiative was proposed in 2013, China and the countries along the routes have actively promoted cooperation in highway infrastructure connectivity. However, there are still many challenges to achieve regional highway accessibility in the Belt and Road region. Based on highway international transportation chain, this paper incorporates driving time and cross-border customs clearance time to analyze accessibility of highway transport in the Belt and Road area from highway traffic capacity and traffic convenience. The results indicate that: (1) Highway traffic capacity presents an uneven spatial distribution pattern in the Belt and Road area, where Central and Eastern Europe, China, and India form “three poles” with a significantly higher capacity than other regions. Central Asia, West Asia, and Northeast Asia have low traffic capacity because of low road coverage and insufficient high-grade roads. (2) The clearance facilitation in various regions of the Belt and Road area is quite different. The high degree of integration makes the customs clearance of Central and Eastern European countries an absolute advantage in the whole region, but there are great obstacles of it in West Asia and North Africa. (3) The spatial structure of highway driving facilitation is a “central-peripheral” one. The regional geometric center coincides with the optimal area of driving facilitation. In addition to the location factor of the node, natural constraints such as natural terrain and climatic conditions become the main obstacles to highway transportation. (4) Due to the cumulative space distance, cross-border customs clearance time, highway network and political situation, the spatial distribution of highway traffic convenience presents the “Central and Eastern Europe-China” bimodal structure. There are significant differences in highway traffic convenience between regions and even between countries within the region. From high to low-traffic convenience, the travel time is gradually transferred from driving time to customs clearance time. Therefore, the barriers to cross-border clearance between countries have largely reduced the accessibility of international highway transport.