Modeling Corridor and Growth Pole Coevolution in Regional Transportation Network

The relationship between the transportation network and the spatial layout of economic activity is fundamental theory to model the formation and expansion of transport corridors and cities in regional planning. However, previous efforts have mainly focused on the conceptual or theoretical model and failed to replicate the generation and development of corridors and cities in space. This study presents a mathematical model to describe the coevolution process of transport corridors and growth poles on a regional scale: from a few isolated cities and unconnected roads to a complex and interconnected urban system. The mathematical model has two major components: a corridor growth model and a growth pole formation model. The corridor growth model is characterized with network-flow adaption to reflect the cost convergence and flow expansion effect in a transportation network. The growth pole formation model embodies the pole-axis coevolution process based on the Steiner point identification using the index of accessibility. A coevolution simulation is applied to replicate how the growth poles and transport corridors emerged and evolved in the Yangtze River Delta region in China. Meanwhile, the rationality and feasibility of the model are validated. The results show that the presented model simulates well the development of transport corridors and growth poles in the Yangtze River Delta region.