• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
• /
• v.10 no.2
• /
• pp.183-193
• /
• 2023

This paper proposes and examines the economic impact of infrastructure improvement on the San-En-Nanshin region in the Chubu area of Japan. We develop a single transportation computable general equilibrium (CGE) model for each subregion within the San-En-Nanshin region. The explicit modeling of the transportation infrastructure is defined based on interregional commuting flows and business trips, considering the spatial structure of the San-En-Nanshin economy. A CGE model is integrated with an interregional transportation network model to enhance the framework's potential for understanding the infrastructure's role in regional development. To evaluate the economic impact of transportation improvement, we analyze the interrelationship between travel time savings and regional output and income. The economic impact analysis under the CGE framework reveals how transportation facilities and systems affect firm and household behavior and therefore induce changes in the production and consumption of commodities and transportation services. The proposed theoretical model was tested by using data from the 2005 IO tables of each subregion and the 2006 transport flow dataset issued by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism in Japan. As a result, the paper confirms the positive effect of transportation investment on the total output and income of the studied region. Specifically, we found that while economic benefits typically appear in urban areas, rural areas can still potentially benefit from transportation improvement projects.

• Journal of the Korean association of regional geographers
• /
• v.20 no.1
• /
• pp.30-48
• /
• 2014

Relying on the interaction indices - dominance index, relative strength index and entropy index, this paper analyzes the structural features of urban network in the Seoul metropolitan area with the flows of commuting, business, and freight. Analytical results show that the Seoul metropolitan urban system is vertical, size-dependent, one-way, and the highest city-dominant network rather than horizontal, size-neutral, two-way, complementary one. The network of freight flow is a little bit more symmetrical than the networks of commuting and business. However, the interaction with Seoul is still determinant in all aspects of hierarchical structure, relative strength, and symmetry of flow.

• Journal of the Economic Geographical Society of Korea
• /
• v.11 no.1
• /
• pp.59-77
• /
• 2008

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of traffic-related air pollution on the urban population in the Metropolitan Seoul area. In particular, this study analyzes urban population exposure to traffic-related particulate materials(PM). For the purpose, this study examines the relationships between traffic flows and PM concentration levels during the last fifteen years. Traffic volumes have been decreased significantly in recent year in Seoul, however, PM levels have been declined less compare to traffic volumes. It may be related with the rapid growth in the population and vehicle numbers in Gyenggi, the outskirt of Seoul, where several New Towns have been developed in the middle of 1990's. The spatial pattern of commuting has changed, and thus and travel distances and traffic volumes have increased along the main roads connecting CBDs in Seoul and New Towns consisting of large residential apartment complexes. These changes in traffic flows and travel behaviors cause increasing exposure to traffic-related air pollution for urban population over the Metropolitan Seoul area. GIS techniques are applied to analyze the spatial patterns of traffic flows, population distributions, PM distributions, and passenger flows comprehensively. This study also analyzes real time base traffic flow data and passenger flow data obtained from T-card transaction database applying data mining techniques. This study also attempts to develop a space-time model for assessing journey-time exposure to traffic related air pollutants based on travel passenger frequency distribution function. The results of this study can be used for the implications for sustainable transport systems, public health and transportation policy by reducing urban air pollution and road traffics in the Metropolitan Seoul area.

• Journal of the Economic Geographical Society of Korea
• /
• v.23 no.1
• /
• pp.1-17
• /
• 2020

The study aims to identify economic interdependencies between regions and define functional economic areas of Korea by analyzing inter-firm transaction networks. Previous research has relied on pre-given administrative boundaries or cultural homogeneity and used data such as commuting, population movement, and cargo flows which could not fully explain economic activities. To overcome the limitations, this study applies a community detection method to inter-firm transaction networks derived from the CRETOP+ database of Korean corporate data. The novel dataset and the network analysis enables us to identify Korea's functional economic areas based on actual inter-firm linkages. The result shows that there are six to seven economic blocs in the networks as of 2018. In particular, one huge economic bloc is formed integrating the Seoul metropolitan area, Chungcheong, and Gangwon provinces. Meanwhile, North Jeolla and South Jeolla provinces form two economic blocs separately rather than being tied up in one bloc due to the low frequency of transactions between each other. The two big economic blocs of Daegu-Gyeongbuk and Busan-Gyeongnam exist, and interestingly, Ulsan, Gyeongju, and Pohang form a separate middle-sized bloc across the administrative boundaries. The results reveal that the future balanced national development policies should be implemented based on functional economic areas derived from empirical data.