How does transportation development affect environmental performance? Evidence from Hainan Province, China

Regarding the environmental effects of transportation development, changes in traffic types and traffic congestion have attracted more attention, while the internal impact mechanism is under-researched. Conventionally, transportation development can improve the environmental performance through the agglomeration effect and technological progress. However, there is not always the case since the influence path of transportation development is diverse and highly region-specific. Therefore, this paper attempts to clarify the influence mechanism of transportation development on environmental performance, taking 18 counties and cities in Hainan Province, China, as an example. The results show that transportation development will alleviate environmental pollution. And land use change, as an important mediator, is a double-edged sword for environmental improvement. Transportation development can both reduce and worsen environmental pollution by exacerbating land use efficiency and increasing land development intensity, respectively. However, the improvement of environmental performance brought by the increasing in land use efficiency can alleviate and even offset the environmental pollution problems caused by over-exploitation of land. Hence, implementing transport policies integrated with land management may be the key to achieving sustainable transport.

Automated summary

The influence mechanism of transportation development on environmental performance is diverse and region-specific. This study takes 18 counties and cities in Hainan Province, China as an example and finds that transportation development can alleviate environmental pollution. However, land use change is a double-edged sword, with both positive and negative effects on environmental improvement. Implementing transport policies integrated with land management may be crucial for achieving sustainable transport.