A Comprehensive GIS Database for China's Surface Transport Network with Implications for Transport and Socioeconomics Research

We build a granular GIS database that covers China's national highways, modern motorways, traditional railways, high-speed railways, and waterways at an annual frequency from 1993 to 2020.Overall network length more than tripled after 1993, with half the increase accounted for by modern motorways and high-speed railways.Mean distance from zip-code centroids in China to nearest motorway access point fell from 302 km in 1993 to 15 km in 2020.Average within-county connectivity to the transport network rose sharply.We also show that discrepancies between distance to nearest motorway access point and straight-line distance to motorway routes are often large, and they correlate with calendar time, terrain features, and economic development.This finding raises concerns about the use of straight-line distance when estimating the causal effects of transport improvements.Our GIS database is freely available on an open-access basis, creating an empirical laboratory for new research in multiple directions.