Page 415 - 360.revista de Alta Velocidad - Nº 5

A first evaluation of the relationship between High Speed Rail (HSR) and the tourism sector in Turkey: The cases of
two Turkish cities

Similarly, according to an analysis by the French statistics office, INSEE, between 2007 and 2008,
the average stay in tourist accommodation declined in almost all areas served by the East
European High speed Line, as well as in Reims in 2007 (INSEE Lorraine, 2009). This reduction also
reflects the change in the strategies of companies, which are increasingly moving towards one-
day conferences to reduce budget. Furthermore, this reduction in overnight stay can lead to an
overall reduction in spending by tourists (Levinson, 2012). This trend reveals the contradictory
impacts of HSR on tourism (Albalate, Bel, 2010). The analysis of numerous case studies also
shows the importance of public policies in served cities (Bazin-Benoit and Delaplace, 2015,
Delaplace et Benoit-Bazin, 2017).
Table 2. A review of the studies showing negative or no impacts of HSR on tourism

Impact Studies (Realized; Expected)

No growth of tourism in small cities Bazin et al. 2013a

Bonnafous, 1987; Mannone, 1995 ; Haynes, 1997;
Decrease in overnights stay
Sands, 1993
INSEE Lorraine 2009; Bazin et al., 2011; 2014,
Fall in the length of stays in the long run AUDRR, 2012, Bonnafous, 1987, Mannone, 1995;
Amiard; 1997, Okabe, 1980 ; Chen,2013

Expansion of same-day round-trip journeys Mizohata, 1995

No growth in the winter-sports tourism Bonnafous, 1987

Chen & Haynes, 2012 ; Coronado et al. , 2013 ;
Reinforcement in the competition
Wang et al., 2012
between tourist destinations
Masson & Petiot, 2009
Negative impacts on air transport tourism Albalate, D., Fageda, X. 2015

Decrease in tourism revenues due to the Levinson, 2012
decrease of the length of stay

No impact on tourism destination choice Delaplace et al., 2016; Valeri et al., 2012

Source: Adapted and completed from Delaplace et al., 2014

Another important point is that there has been no systematic impact on destination choice.
For example, a survey carried out in 2012 in Paris showed that HSR is the third most important
element in the choice of destination after historical and cultural heritage, and architecture
(Delaplace et al., 2014). Moreover, the modelling results showed that the HSR variable was
highly significant in the probability of returning to Paris for tourism purposes. In another study
on Disneyland visits, tourists declared that HSR was so crucial in their choice of destination that
they would not have come without the presence of an HSR service (Delaplace et al., 2016).
Another survey, conducted in Naples, showed that there was an impact with regard to visits to
Naples and the intention to visit other cities nearby by HSR (Pagliara, 2014).
The analysis conducted in Madrid showed similar results: no impact on Madrid itself, but an
impact on cities linked to Madrid by HSR (Pagliara et al., 2015). Here, the extreme heterogeneity
of situations comes to the fore, often with reference to specific cases, underlining the need

International Congress on High-speed Rail: Technologies and Long Term Impacts - Ciudad Real (Spain) - 25th anniversary Madrid-Sevilla corridor 413