S. L. SAZONOV

Candidate of Economic Sciences

Far East Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences

Keywords: China, the role of transport, socio-economic development

The Chinese leadership considers the main modes of transport of the PRC, primarily rail and road, as a key life-supporting system of the economy, the most important factor in economic and social development, strengthening the unity of the country's economic space.

China's dynamic economic growth at the beginning of the twenty-first century was largely due to large-scale investments in the development of transport infrastructure. The rapid development of the transport industry has largely determined China's economic and spatial development, and has contributed to strengthening its integrity and international influence. New high-speed railways and highways "compress" the vast expanse of China, making its territorial structure more reliable and accessible. By becoming a new strategic industry in China, they stimulate domestic demand and promote the development of related high-tech industries.

THE ROLE OF HIGH-SPEED RAILWAYS

After the completion of the world's longest 2,298-km high-speed railway (HSR) Beijing-Guangzhou in ten years, by the beginning of 2014, the world's largest railway network with ^a total length of 10,463 km1 was created. This huge work cost China an astronomical sum - more than 2.5 trillion yuan*, but today in China high-speed express trains run on 34 lines. The construction of high-speed highways has significantly increased the mobility of the Chinese population. By the beginning of 2014, VSZHD accounted for 25% of all passenger traffic by rail in the PRC.² The annual increase in passenger traffic after the commissioning of the Beijing-Tianjin High-speed railway was 20%, and the Beijing - Shanghai High-speed railway-40%. In 2013 alone, about 100 million people used the Beijing-Guangzhou High-speed Rail services. there are ³ passengers.

According to the "Urban Development Plan for the PRC in the period 2014-2020", the total length of the VSZHD in the PRC will exceed 20 thousand km by 2020, and the total length of railway lines for trains with a speed of at least 160 km / h will be ⁴⁰ thousand km4. Conventional railways will connect cities with a population exceeding 200 thousand people. At the same time, the high-speed railways, consisting of four lines in the north-east direction and four in the east-west direction, will cover almost all cities in China with a population of 500 thousand or more people and provide access to high-speed rail services for more than 90% of the country's population.⁵

The north-south highways will connect Beijing with major metropolitan areas such as Shanghai and Guangzhou, as well as the northeastern cities of Shenyang, Harbin and Dalian. The east-west railway lines will connect the Beijing-Guangzhou and Beijing-Shanghai High-speed Railways and extend the high-speed rail network to western cities. The construction of new highways will cost the Chinese Railways 1 trillion yuan ⁶.

As the VSZHD network expanded, high-speed trains began to compete with traditional regional airlines. According to experts of the Chinese Civil Aviation University, the commissioning of the VSZHD reduced the number of air passengers on this domestic route by 30% ⁷. As a result, regional airlines had to cancel almost all flights within the province. After opening in 2012 Some regional airlines have reduced the cost of tickets for flights on this route from 1 thousand yuan ($160) to 200 yuan ($32).

In 2013, the Shenzhen-Beijing high-speed railway (passing through the cities of Guangzhou, Changsha, Wuhan, Zhengzhou and Shijiazhuang) came into operation, which reduces the travel time between the two cities to 8 hours instead of the previous 29 (in the future it will continue to Hong Kong). Depending on the class, a ticket for the VSZHD costs from 272 to 540 yuan (for a regular train, it costs from 257 to 720 yuan). A ticket for a 3-hour flight from Shenzhen to Beijing by China Southern Airlines airbus A380 costs 1,750 yuan ⁸. As a result, in 2013, leading Chinese airlines announced a reduction in passenger fares.⁹ China Eastern Airlines CEO Liu Shaoyong believes that " in the near future, the Chinese Railways network will cover almost all of China's railways."

* The exchange rate of the Chinese yuan to the dollar in April 2014 was 10 yuan = $1.61 (editor's note).

Table

Duration of travel on the VSZHD from Beijing to the largest cities of China

Source: Lan Xinzhen, Zhang Xiaoli. Riding the High-Speed Rails. China plans to double its high-speed railway network to make domestic transportation more convenient and efficient - http://www.bjreview.com.cn/Cover_Story_ Series_2010/2010 - 05/24/content_274441_3.htm; Beijing-Guangzhou high-speed railway - http://europe.chinadaily.com.cn travel/2012 - 12/25/content_16053377.htm; High-speed railway links Northeast China - http://europe.chinadaily.com.cn/business/2012 - 12/01/content_15977195.htm; Zhao Lei. Train line slashes travel time between big cities -http://europe.chinadaily.com.cn/epaper/2013 - 01/04/content_16079508.htm; China rewrites global highspeed rail pattern in six years - http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90778/8139987.html

all regions of the country, which will put direct and long-term pressure on 60% of the Chinese civil aviation market " ¹⁰.

The intense competition between the two modes of transport in China has forced their leaders to start working out ways to cooperate and work out compromises in the struggle to attract passengers. In 2013, Air China entered into a partnership agreement with the Shanghai Railway Administration, according to which passengers who order an air ticket at any of the two Shanghai airports will simultaneously be able to purchase tickets for all railways traveling between Shanghai and the four nearest cities.

Air China is also developing the ability to connect its international flights with high-speed train schedules. Other Chinese aviation companies are taking more drastic measures: since 2013, China Eastern Airlines has been booking and paying for all-Russian Railway tickets for passengers who use its services and fly to cities neighboring Shanghai or Wuhan. Since 2013, Hainan Airlines has adjusted its flight schedule to that of high-speed trains in Hainan ¹¹.

EXPRESSWAY NETWORK EXPANSION PROGRAM

During 2000-2013, more than a third of all investments in road construction development were made in the expansion of the National Expressway Network (NSSN). The NSSM became the basis and main element of national road transport - expressways began to connect Beijing and Shanghai with the capitals of all provinces of the country, and united 200 main cities with a population exceeding 500 thousand people.¹² The country has built one of the longest high - end highways in the world-the Tongsan highway: Tongjiang (Heilongjiang) - Sanya (Hainan), with a length of 5,700 km13.

At the beginning of the 12th five-year plan (2011-2015), the Government of the People's Republic of China approved plans to create a National High - Speed Network (NSS; another name is "High - Speed Road Network: 7 - 9-18") by 2015. By combining with the NSSM and expanding it, the new network of high-end expressways with a length of more than 1 thousand km in 2015 will combine 9 major meridian highways in the north-south direction and 18 latitudinal corridors in the east-west direction, as well as 7 ray-shaped highways originating in Beijing: Pekinshanghai, Beijing-Taipei, Beijing-Hong Kong-Macao, Beijing-Kunming, Beijing-Lhasa, Beijing-Urumqi and Beijing-Harbin ¹⁴.

According to the" Urban Development Plan in China for the period 2014-2020", the main goal of creating the NSS is to connect the capitals of all provinces of the country and the largest cities of China with a population of 500 thousand inhabitants by 2015. And by 2020, it is planned to connect all the cities of the People's Republic of China, whose population exceeds 200 thousand people, thereby uniting more than 1 billion. There are ¹⁵ Chinese residents. It is assumed that all residents of the eastern provinces will be able to reach the expressways within half an hour, the central provinces - in an hour, and the western provinces - in two hours.¹⁶

Thanks to the creation of a network of multi-lane expressways, the provinces receive significant benefits: transport costs for enterprises in all sectors of the economy are reduced, traffic speeds and cargo turnover are increased. Due to the effect of "communicating vessels", the levels of socio-economic development of neighboring provinces are leveled, the intensity of communications increases, and international relations are activated. Improved transport accessibility leads to increased mobility and improved quality of life for the population.

In 2013, the length of China's highways exceeded 4.3 million km, of which more than 3.6 million km were expressways and Class I-IV roads. The density of highways in China was about 402.25 km/1 thousand ^km2 of the country's territory, an increase of 4 times compared to the beginning of the 1980s (in France-1820, Germany-1800, USA-670, Brazil-200, Angola-40, Russia-36.5) ¹⁷. roads made up more than 65% of the total length of all roads in China, and for every inhabitant of the country in 2013 there were 11.3 ^m2 of such roads (in Western countries-15-20 ^m2 per person).¹⁸.

Between 2005 and 2013, the Chinese government invested more than $ 250 billion. RMB in the construction of roads in rural areas, which resulted in the construction of 1 million km of new rural roads, improved coverage of more than 350 thousand km of county and parish roads. In 2013, 90% of China's parishes and settlements were covered by the road network.

According to the " Transport Development Program of the People's Republic of China for the 12th five-year Plan (2011-2015)", by the end of 2015, the total length of existing highways in rural areas will reach 3.9 million km. Thus, all towns and 95% of villages in China will be covered by the road network ¹⁹.

THE ROLE OF THE VSZHD IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ECONOMY OF THE SURROUNDING AREAS

In 2008, construction of the longest 1318-km Beijing-Shanghai railway (Jinhu City District, Zhejiang Province) for the period of the 11th five-year plan began. The main purpose of its creation was to connect the two main economic zones - the Bohai Bay and the Yangtze River Delta, which account for 6.5% of the country's total territory. It is home to 1/4 of the population of the PRC, and the region's GDP is 40% of the national ²⁰. The total amount of GDP produced in the areas adjacent to the highway exceeded 75% of the PRC's GDP ²¹. The construction of the Beijing-Shanghai railway between 2008 and 2010 stimulated additional domestic demand in the Bohai Bay Economic Zone and the Yangtze River Delta in the amount of 1.2 trillion yuan ($192 million), and more than 2 million people were created. jobs ²².

After the most remote western 1956-km Qinghai-Tibet high-speed railway was commissioned in 2006, the Tibet Autonomous Region's GDP increased from $ 34.2 billion. yuan in 2006 to 80.2 billion in 2013. During this period, the tourism industry's annual revenues increased by 25%, the number of tourists visiting the TAR increased by 30%, and the total number of tourists visiting the autonomous region increased from 1.8 million. up to 12.9 million, respectively. ²³ In 2013, 330,000 people, or 10% of Tibet's population, worked in the tourism industry. Due to the rapid development of the regional economy and the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, the total volume of export-import operations in the autonomous region exceeded $³ billion in 201324.

During the three years of operation of the Wuhan-Guangzhou railway in 2013, the total volume of passengers carried exceeded 100 million people. The cities of Hunan province - Changsha, Binzhou, and Hengyang-located in the zone of influence of the All-Russian Railway were able to implement more than 3 thousand industrial projects, which now make up 40% of the industrial potential, and create more than 50 thousand new jobs, while the growth of retail sales in these cities significantly exceeded the provincial average of ²⁵.

According to calculations by Chinese economists based on cross-industry balance sheets, every billion yuan invested in the development of the VSZHD creates more than 20 thousand new jobs in the railway industry and 2 times more jobs in related industries. ²⁶ Chinese experts say that investing 700 billion yuan in the development of the VSZHD creates more than 20 thousand new jobs in the railway industry and The RMB ($110 billion) investment in railway construction can meet the demand for 30 million tons of steel and 140 million tons of cement. They are unanimous in their assessment:

- the multiplicative transport effect can accelerate the development of the country's economy and increase domestic demand;

- investment in the development of railway infrastructure contributes to the growth of China's GDP by 2-3%.

The expansion of the VSZHD network will activate the development of all industries related to the construction of the new VSZHD. According to experts of the Chinese Ministry of Railways, the longest Beijing-Guangzhou railway in the world, which was commissioned in December 2012, will increase China's GDP by 30 billion rubles annually. RMB. The highway connects 5 major economic zones of the People's Republic of China, and the development of business activity in the 28 largest cities located in this region will ensure additional GDP growth of the People's Republic of China by 3-5% within 5 years after the opening of the VSZHD. Only one of its sections - Beijing-Zhengzhou-will add $ 275.8 billion by 2030. China's GDP, while the annual contribution of this highway will be up to 15.3 billion yuan. RMB ²⁷.

The development of VSZHD in China produces a significant intra-industry multiplier effect. On the one hand, it provides a dramatic increase in the speed of movement, in accordance with the needs of passengers, and on the other - an increase in the carrying capacity to ensure mass cargo transportation with a minimum cost of ²⁸. Increasing the share of freight rail transportation by 1% in the total cargo turnover of China's transport will reduce the cost of national logistics by 21.2 billion rubles. RMB.

With the opening of the Jinan-Qingdao, Wuhan-Guangzhou and Shanghai-Nanjing railways, freight turnover on the existing freight railways increased by 200 million tons per year29. The commissioning of the Wuhan-Guangzhou railway made it possible to additionally use 33 freight trains, or 3,960 freight cars, on the old railway line, increase the annual capacity of the main line by 87.6 million tons and increase the volume of coal export from the field by 30%.

Pingdingshan, located near Highway ³⁰.

In modern conditions, the share of trade in expensive cargo with a short circulation cycle is increasing in commodity exchange. Until recently, in China, 95% of the urgent delivery service's cargo was transported by air and road, while the share of railways accounted for only 5%.

With the rapid development of the VSZHD network, the situation has changed dramatically: in 2013, the leading Chinese railway operator China Railway Group signed cooperation agreements with major Chinese and foreign express delivery companies: SF Express, China Post, UPS, Pony Express, DHL, TNT Express. Calculations of the cost of transportation of urgent goods by the Guangzhou (Guangdong) - Changsha (Hunan) railway in 2013 proved that the cost of delivery of urgent goods over a distance of 500 to 1 thousand rubles. km by high-speed rail can be reduced by 40-50% compared to air transport ³¹.

The development of all types of transport has led to a sharp increase in both internal and external business and tourist mobility of the population, maintaining high growth rates of the country's economy. If in 2000 only 10 million passengers flew abroad, in 2013 - 97.3 million. This number is expected to exceed 115 million in 2014. ³²

In 2013, China had 182 airports, of which 21 handled more than 10 million passengers a year. Beijing International Airport was ranked 2nd in the world in terms of passenger turnover, and by 2015, the number of passengers in the world had increased. It will handle more than 100 million passengers and overtake the world's largest airport in Atlanta (USA)³³. By 2020, the number of airports capable of handling more than 30 million passengers per year will increase from 3 to 13. According to the government's plans, by 2020, up to 90% of the country's population should be covered by air transport services, and by 2030, the volume of passenger traffic of Chinese civil aviation will reach 1.5 billion rubles. a person that will transform China into the largest aviation market in the world ³⁴.

AVIATION AND MARITIME TRANSPORT

In 2013, 10 of the world's 50 largest cargo ports were located in China. The top ten largest ports in the world includes 7 Chinese ports ³⁵.

Since 2003, China has surpassed the United States to lead the world in terms of container traffic. In the period from 2005 to 2013, the cargo turnover of Chinese seaports increased from 70 million tons. TEU up to 188.78 million rubles. TEU (equivalent to a 20-foot container)* , and the decisive contribution of seaports and container fleets to the increase in container traffic volumes allowed the country to increase its share in global container cargo turnover from 10% to more than 30%, respectively ³⁶.

In 2013, the Asia-Pacific region accounted for more than 70% of the world's container cargo handling volume, and 9 of the 10 largest container ports in the world are located in the region, 6 of which are Chinese ports. China's largest container ports are Shanghai, Ning Bo Zhoushan, Hong Kong, Shen Zhen, Tianjin and Xiamen. In 2010, Shanghai surpassed Singapore in terms of container handling volumes and reached the 10th place in the world in this indicator. In 2013 it handled 33.6 million TEU, and the share of Shanghai and Ningbo-Zhoushan ports in ^{global container traffic increased from 4.9% in 2000 to 25.8% in 2013.3}

LARGE-SCALE TRANSPORT CONSTRUCTION

In 2013, the State Council of the People's Republic of China approved a plan of measures aimed at stimulating domestic demand. In particular, the government allocated 36.3 billion rubles. RMB ($34.51 million) to subsidize the purchase of cars that use alternative energy sources and energy-saving household appliances. According to Chinese analysts, these measures will lead to an increase in consumer demand in the country in 2014 to 450 billion rubles. yuan ($71.6 billion) ³⁹.

The Chinese Government has consistently resorted to a significant increase in investment in expanding infrastructure construction during periods of economic and financial crises. In other words, the transport complex is turning into an "anti-crisis assistant", producing a multiplicative effect in technologically related sectors of the national economy and ensuring the expansion of employment.

The global financial crisis that broke out in 2008 was a serious test of strength for the Chinese economy. In 2008, the State Council of the People's Republic of China adopted the first ever large-scale anti-crisis investment project in the amount of 4 trillion yuan ($586 billion), equivalent to 15% of China's GDP. The most important role was assigned to the country's transport complex - it accounted for almost half of the allocation, or 1.8 trillion yuan. Large - scale transport construction, primarily railway construction, has become the main focus.

If in 2007 investments in this sector amounted to 180 billion rubles. In 2008 - 330 billion yuan, while the construction of new railways with a length of more than 10 thousand km in 2009 was spent 600 billion yuan. In 2010, it was 843 billion yuan. RMB ⁴⁰. The increase in funding contributed to the creation of $ 4 million in 2009 and $ 4 million in 2010. another 2.5-3 million new jobs, an increase in the production of technical equipment ⁴¹.

The global financial crisis, on the one hand, eased the burden of China's transport complex by reducing its work volumes, and, on the other hand, turned the complex into an "anti-crisis assistant" that stimulates the development of the national economy. Finally, significant capital investment-

* TEU-twenty-foot equivalent-a conventional unit of measurement for the capacity of cargo vehicles. It is often used when describing the capacity of container ships and container terminals (editor's note).

According to Chinese economists, the investment in the development of transport infrastructure provided for in the anti-crisis package has created up to 8 million additional new jobs.

In the period 2012-2013, the Government of the People's Republic of China actively used increased investment in the development of railway infrastructure and as the main means of boosting economic activity.

In 2012, the State Council of the People's Republic of China approved a plan for the construction of metro lines, urban and intercity tracks for surface rail transport in 28 cities.

The country's 2,710 km-long cities are worth about 1 trillion yuan. Most of these projects are designed for the implementation period from 3 to 8 years. According to the country's leadership, they are designed to give a new impetus to the country's slowing economic development and significantly improve the investment climate, stimulate the production of steel, cement, electronics, activate the real estate market and stimulate domestic demand.

At the end of 2013, the 20% growth in investment in the Chinese economy was mainly driven by increased investment in infrastructure and housing development. At the beginning of 2014, the Chinese leadership recognized that, largely due to the growth of investment in the development of the transport complex of the PRC, stable growth of the entire economy in the range of 7-8% is ensured, and the growth of domestic demand in the country is stimulated.⁴²

¹ China's high-speed railways exceed 10,000 km http://www.china.org.cn/business/2013 - 09/26/content_30141770.htm

² Railway reforms to deliver multiple dividends http://www.china.org.cn/business/2013 - 08/22/content_29792250.htm.

³ Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway records 100 mln passenger trips - http://www.china.org.cn/business/2013 - 03/01/content_28093 119.htm

^{Li Yang.} 4 New urbanization plan points out right direction -http://topic.chinadaily.com.cn/index/cache?collection-cbsweb& source=chinadaily.com.cn&title-New+urbanization+plan+points+out+ right+direction&aid-7362559.

⁵ China to speed up transport construction http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/business/2014 - 03/17/content_1735 0757.htm

⁶ China's 2014 budget for railway construction put at RMB 630bn -http://en.ce.cn/subject/exclusive/201401/14/t201401142118541. shtml; China to form high-speed railway network by 2015 -http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/business/2012 - 07/25/content_ 15617455.htm; Chengdu-Chongqing Passenger Railway under construction - http://en.ce.cn/Industries/Transport/201403/06/ t20140306_2430476_1.shtml

^{Zhao Lei.} 7 Airlines should alter strategy to compete -http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2013 - 12/30/content_172039 79.htm

⁸ China's high-speed railway boom to continue http://www.china.org.cn/business/2013 - 01/16/content_27700648.htm

⁹ Rail ministry responds to price critics http://www.china.org.cn/china/2012 - 12/24/content_27497118.htm

¹⁰ China's high-end manufacturing booms on fast track -http://usa.chinadaily.com.cn/business/2012 - 10/22/content_15836501. htm

¹¹ Air China cooperates with high-speed rail http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2012-11/29/content_159727 26.htm

¹² Highways - http://english.gov.cn/about/transport.htm

¹³ By Land, Air or Water: China's Infrastructure Improvements Help Companies Deliver the Goods // The China Business Review. April-June 2012. Vol. 39. Issue 2. P. 27.

¹⁴ Highways...

¹⁵ China to speed up transport construction...

¹⁶ The nine major tasks 2014 - http://en.ce.cn/subject/ npc2014/npc2014f/201403/06Д20140306_2427551_1.shtml

¹⁷ China - Road density - http://www.indexmundi.com/facts/ china/road-density

¹⁸ More public infrastructure projects to "Go West" -http://en.ce.cn/Business/Macro-economic/201310/23Д20131023 1653564.shtml

¹⁹ China Issues Plan for National Road Network http://english.cri.cn/6909/2013/06/20/2702s 771224.htm

^{Eddy Li.} 20 High-speed rail network helping unlock markets for SMEs - http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/hkedition/2013 - 03/29/ content_16355337.htm

²¹ China's high-end manufacturing booms on fast track...

²² Ibidem.

²³ Tourists to Tibet surge in 2013 - http://news. xinhuanet.com/english/china/2014 - 02/02/c_133089541.htm

²⁴ Railway boosts economic growth in Tibet - http://www.chma-daily.com.cn/business/2014 - 01/15/content_17236538.htm

²⁵ Beijing-Guangzhou high-speed rail to add 30b yuan to GDP annually - http://english. peopledaily.com.cn/90778/8074227.html

^{Lan Xinzhen, Zhang Xiaoli.} 26 Riding the High-Speed Rails. China plans to double its high-speed railway network to make domestic transportation more convenient and efficient - http://www.bjreview.com.cn/Cover_Story_Series_2010/2010 - 05/24/content_2744 41_3.htm

²⁷ Beijing-Guangzhou high-speed rail to add 30b yuan to GDP annually...

^{Coates R.} 28 Nine Rules for Logistics in China // China Business Review. 2012. Vol. 39, Issue 2. P. 15; Shi Yingying. Looking to China's logistics market - http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/business/2013 - 07/01/content _16695910.htm

²⁹ China's railways mileage tops 100,000 km - http://www.chma-daily.com.cn/business/2013 - 12/28/contentl_17202734.htm

³⁰ Cargo transport set to benefit from link http://www.china.org.cn/business/2012 - 12/25/content_27506969.htm

^{Shi Yingying (China Daily).} 31 Looking to China's logistics market -http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/business/2013 - 07/01/content_l 6695910.htm

³² More Chinese set to spread their wings - http://en.ce.cn/ Industries/tourism/201401/30/t2014 0130_2236037.shtml

³³ Beijing airport is world's 2nd busiest - http://news.xinhuanet.eom/english/china/2013 - 12/30/c 133006840. htm

³⁴ Aviation industry awaits opportunities - http://en.ce.cn/ Industries/Aerospare/201402/13/t 20140213_2293947.shtml

^{Zhong Nan (chinadaily.com.cn).} 35 Ports experience stable expansion in 2013 - http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/business/chinadata/2014 - 03/14/content_17347273.htm

³⁶ China General Cargo Logistics Industry Report, 2011 - 2012 -http://www.researchinchina.com/Report/ReportInfo.aspx?id-6437.

^{Zhao Lei (China Daily).} 37 Chinese shipbuilder reveals breakthrough technology - http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2013 - 08/20/ content_16905725.htm

³⁸ Shanghai still container port leader - http://en.ce.cn/ Industries/Transport/201401/05/120140105_2052772.shtml

^{Zhou Xiaoyan.} 39 Consumption Takes the Lead. Buoyant domestic demand injects vigor into a slowing economy - http://www.bjreview.com.cn/quotes/txt/2013 - 10/12/content_513320_3.htm

⁴⁰ China plans 650b yuan in rail investment - http://europe. chinadaily.com.cn/business/2013 - 01/17/content_16132939.htm

⁴¹ China's high-end manufacturing booms on fast track...

^{Zhang Liqun.} 42 A New Trend. China's economic growth is stabilizing in the 7 - 8 percent range - http://www.bjreview.com.cn/print/txt/2013 - 12/30/content_587765.htm

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