Spatial Differences and Heterogeneity of Regional Accessibility Based on Highway Network: A Case Study of the Pearl River Delta, China

As the significant internal connections inside a region, the highway network plays an important role in the regional sustainable development. This paper utilizes the method of geographical information system (GIS) to construct a topology model with nodes described by the intersections and entrances of highway network in the Pearl River Delta (PRD), China. Furthermore, the spatial econometric statistical analysis models are applied to detect and characterize the spatial accessibility differences and heterogeneity. This aims to reveal the spatial nonstationarity of the regional accessibility in the PRD, and thus support establish a sophisticated highway network system for promoting the development of the PRD.