This dataset is derived from the appendix of the Research Report on Interprovincial Railway Transportation under the Unified National Market by the Yangtze River Industrial Economic Research Institute at Nanjing University. China's railway (high-speed rail) construction has achieved remarkable accomplishments. However, due to the complexity of railway schedules and difficulties in collecting historical data, researchers have struggled to accurately estimate the time-saving effects of railway infrastructure improvements. The research team addressed this by compiling data from historical editions of China Railway Passenger Train Timetables and conducting traceability analyses on train classifications and operational histories. This effort yielded railway travel time matrices between provincial capitals (municipalities and autonomous region capitals) for even-numbered years from 2012 to 2022, reflecting railway construction progress through temporal dimensions.
CnOpenData has obtained authorization from Professor Lu Jian of Nanjing University's Yangtze River Industrial Development Research Institute to include this dataset in its public data repository for academic access.
Original documentation can be accessed at the Yangtze River Industrial Economic Research Institute, Nanjing University. Data downloads are available on this platform.
Time Coverage
- Railway travel time matrices between provincial capitals (unit: minutes): 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022
- Direct train count matrices between provincial capitals: 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022
Data Description
The interprovincial railway travel time data originates from the appendix of the Research Report on Interprovincial Railway Transportation under the Unified National Market. The main text systematically collects, organizes, and analyzes indicators reflecting China's interprovincial railway development, including:
- Railway mileage(铁路里程), railway passenger volume(铁路客运量), and freight volume(货运量) of Chinese provinces and cities;
- Railway-delivered economic value(铁路交货值) between provinces;
- Historical records of railway(开通铁路时间) and high-speed rail(开通高铁时间) inaugurations across Chinese cities;
- Passenger train quantities(旅客列车数量) at provincial capitals.
Sample Data
Railway Travel Time Matrix Between Provincial Capitals - 2020
Data Update Frequency
Irregular updates