Riding the green rails: Exploring the nexus between high-speed trains, green innovation, and carbon emissions

Carbon management holds increasing significance in today's global economy, particularly in the pursuit of sustainable development and carbon neutrality for nations like China. Given that energy consumption plays a central role in driving carbon emissions, a comprehensive exploration of strategies to enhance energy efficiency becomes imperative. While existing research has scrutinized the direct impacts of eco-friendly transportation modes like high-speed trains on energy usage and carbon emissions, limited attention has been directed towards investigating their indirect implications. This study posits that the introduction of high-speed train systems facilitates swift flows of resources, expertise, and funding, thereby fostering an environment conducive to green innovation. Thus, this research probes the hypothesis that the establishment of high-speed train networks can trigger green innovation, ultimately bolstering energy efficiency and mitigating carbon emissions. Utilizing data spanning 2008 to 2018 of the prefecture-level cities, this study employs mediation, moderation, and robustness tests to validate the notion that the integration of high-speed train cultivates a setting favorable to green innovation, leading to improved energy efficiency and reduced carbon emissions. Furthermore, this effect is notably accentuated in cities engaged in intellectual property pilot cities and low-carbon pilot cities.