Opinions and Debates

Transport geography: An interdisciplinary and cross-continent dialogue

  • WANG Jiaoe , 1 ,
  • Xinyu (Jason) CAO 2 ,
  • CAO Weidong 3 ,
  • Chia-Lin CHEN 4 ,
  • Frédéric DOBRUSZKES 5 ,
  • César DUCRUET 6 ,
  • FU Xiao 7 ,
  • Andrew R. GOETZ 8 ,
  • GUO Jianke 9 ,
  • HUANG Jie 1 ,
  • LI Yuanjun 10 ,
  • Becky P. Y. LOO 11 ,
  • Tim SCHWANEN 12 ,
  • WANG Lei 13 ,
  • YANG Dong 14 ,
  • Anming ZHANG 15 ,
  • ZONG Huiming 16 ,
  • WU Qitao , 10
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  • 1. Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
  • 2. Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis 55455, USA;
  • 3. School of Geography and Tourism, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241002, China
  • 4. Department of Geography and Planning, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 3BX, UK
  • 5. Université libre de Bruxelles, Département Géosciences, Environnement et Société; Brussels 1050, Belgium
  • 6. French National Centre for Scientific Research, Paris 75006, France
  • 7. School of Geography, NanJing Normal University, Nanjing 210023, China
  • 8. Department of Geography and the Environment, University of Denver, Denver 80208, USA;
  • 9. Institute of Marine Sustainable Development, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian 116029, China;
  • 10. Guangzhou Institute of Geography, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China;
  • 11. Department of Geography, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong 999077, China
  • 12. School of Geography and the Environment, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QY, UK
  • 13. Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China
  • 14. Department of Logistics and Maritime Studies, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong 999077, China
  • 15. Sauder School of Business, University of British Columbia, Vancouver V6T 1Z2, Canada
  • 16. School of Geographical Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China

Received date: 2025-05-13

  Accepted date: 2025-06-22

  Online published: 2025-07-17

Abstract

Transport geography focuses on the interactions between transportation systems and geographical spaces, as well as their impacts on socioeconomic development and environmental change. In recent years, the scope and focus of transport geography have continued to expand, and new changes have taken place in its research paradigm. To promote the innovative development of transport geography, this article builds upon the discipline's connotations, characteristics and research frontiers. It conducts an interdisciplinary dialogue around four thematic sessions: Theory, Sector, Interdiscipline and Prospect. (1) The Theory session proposes that the localization and globalization of the theories and concepts of transport geography, as well as the transformation of research objects and paradigms, have become the key focuses of scholars' future research. (2) The Sector session puts forward that air transportation, maritime shipping, logistics activities and road transportation have different roles and functions for the development of transport geography. (3) The Interdiscipline session suggests that transport geography is closely related to disciplines such as spatial planning, computer science, sociology and GIS, and has the potential for interdisciplinary research. (4) The Prospect session points out the direction of transport geography in the future from the dimensions of low-altitude transportation, new transportation models, mobility and disciplinary frontiers.

Cite this article

WANG Jiaoe , Xinyu (Jason) CAO , CAO Weidong , Chia-Lin CHEN , Frédéric DOBRUSZKES , César DUCRUET , FU Xiao , Andrew R. GOETZ , GUO Jianke , HUANG Jie , LI Yuanjun , Becky P. Y. LOO , Tim SCHWANEN , WANG Lei , YANG Dong , Anming ZHANG , ZONG Huiming , WU Qitao . Transport geography: An interdisciplinary and cross-continent dialogue[J]. GEOGRAPHICAL RESEARCH, 2025 , 44(7) : 1733 -1754 . DOI: 10.11821/dlyj020250562

衷心感谢匿名评审专家和编辑在论文审阅中所付出的时间和精力,专家在观点提炼、文字表达等方面的修改意见,使本文获益匪浅。

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