Research on the mechanism of high-speed railway hub economy: introducing the “communication value” into the “node-place” model

In addition to an extension of high-speed railway (HSR), the development and construction of HSR hubs is an important carrier and medium for the interconnection between HSR networks and cities. In this work, “communication value” is introduced into the “node-place” model, 24 HSR hubs along the Beijing-Shanghai HSR and their cities are selected as the research objects, and an improved gravity model is adopted to measure the effect size of HSR hub economy. The results show that the connotation of the HSR hub economy is mainly manifested in realizing the “node value”, “place value”, and “communication value”. The effect size of HSR hub economy, that is, the interaction between HSR hub and urban development, is equal to the product of “node value”, “place value”, and “communication value”. In the interactive relationship between HSR hubs along the Beijing-Shanghai HSR and urban development, the degree of influence is summarized as follows: “communication value” > “node value” > “place value”.