Research on the Coupling Coordination Relationship Between Tourism Carrying Capacity and the High-Speed Railway Network: A Case Study in China

The rapid development of the high-speed railway (HSR) network has significantly improved the tourism traffic conditions, which has led to a large increase in the number of tourists. This has posed a new challenge for the tourism carrying capacity (TCC) of tourist attractions along the HSR. The purpose of this paper is to measure the development level of TCC and HSR network, and to study the coupling and coordinated development relationship between TCC and HSR network. The development level of TCC and HSR network is calculated respectively. The coupling coordination model is used to study the coupling and coordinated relationship of provincial TCC and HSR network. The results show that this coupling coordination relationship has an overall upward trend. However, the degree of development of the TCC in different provinces and cities is uneven, and the development advantages and disadvantages of the TCC are also different. The development level of the HSR network in most provinces and cities in China is lower than the level of TCC, which indicates that further increasing the construction of the HSR network will have a better marginal effect for the development of the tourism industry in China. Therefore, it is extremely important for China’s provinces and cities, especially in key tourism areas, to promote the coordinated development of the HSR network capacity and TCC. At the same time, in the areas where the development level of HSR network is higher than the level of TCC, measures should be taken to increase the protection of tourism resources and the construction of tourism infrastructure, so as to avoid the destructive impact of the fast-growing number of tourists on the development of local tourism industry.