Cross Effects between High Speed Rail Lines and Tourism: Looking for Empirical Evidence Using the Spanish Case Study

Tourism supply is a complex phenomenon in terms of both the nature of the product and the process of delivery but, despite its complexity, tourism is a relevant economic activity in many countries of the world. Some of these countries have a High Speed Rail (HSR) network in operation, under construction or are planning a new one, and due to the exorbitant cost of new High-Speed Rail (HSR), there is a big concern on the assessment of the cross effects between tourism and HSR.There is practically no literature, even in Europe, on empirical methodologies to assess neither the effects of tourism on HSR demand nor the impacts of HSR on tourism demand. The aim of this paper is to assess empirically the main cross effects between HSR and tourism, using a validated multi-criteria corridor selection methodology (tourism effects on HSR demand) and a multivariate regression model for panel data (HSR effects on tourism demand). Spain has been used as a case study, where tourism is one of the main contributions to national GDP (over 10%), with a HSR network length of 2500 km and long operation experience. Results show clearly the positive effects of tourism destinations on HSR demand; however, the effects on tourism demand caused by HSR are controversial and not clear empirical evidence can be derived, due mainly to the drawbacks of the available database. Both types of conclusions will ultimately provide authorities and policymakers with useful tools when planning the construction of a new HSR line.