Dr Chia-Lin Chen

Chia-Lin is interested in understanding the process of territorial transformation and the role of strategic planning policy and integrated intervention in facilitating a more competitive, inclusive, and sustainable transition in the increasingly enlarged and connected territorial development. With a holistic view of the intersections between economic restructuring, spatial reconfiguration, travel behaviours, and e- & hard infrastructure, her research has focused on the ex-post effects of transport improvement and investigate to what extent and how the opportunities of transport have been perceived and integrated in strategic planning. In return, the lessons from the developmental process could be insightful to explain any impacts from future planning practice.

To exploit the opportunity of transport connectivity for wider development impacts, her research explores a number of issues, including space-time relationship, the mechanism of agglomeration economies, the relationship between transport and land use planning, the power relation between central and local states, the financial capacity and leadership, political ideology of transport investment, planning silo in the decision-making process, etc. In the past decade, her research subjects have mainly focused on rail-based transport and their integration at multiple levels, in particular high-speed rail, Metro, and tram systems.

Relevant Projects:
- Jan 2024- Dec 2027, "Connectivity Spatial Patterns and Influence Mechanisms of Cross-border Railway Transportation under Boundary Constraints", funded by National Natural Science Foundation China, Role: Co-I with PI: Dr Jie Huang, Associate Professor, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences.
- Oct 2023- Sep 2024, "Understanding the long-term evolution of metro impacts on urban development for sustainability, vibrancy, and inclusiveness", funded by ESRC UK and NSTC Taiwan for International Research Collaboration (Duration: Oct 2023-Sep 2024), Role: PI in the UK, in partnership with Co-I, Dr Taku Fujiyama (University College London) & Professor Jenjia Lin, National Taiwan University, Taiwan.
- 2019-2020: Impacts of High-Speed Rail: Hubs, Linkages and Development (Special Issue on Built Environment, Vol.46, No,3) https://www.alexandrinepress.co.uk/built-environment/impacts-hsr-hubs-linkages-and-development
- 2017-2020: Handbook on Transport and Urban Transformation in China (Book Project: Lead-editor). https://www.e-elgar.com/shop/gbp/handbook-on-transport-and-urban-transformation-in-china-9781786439239.html
- 2020: HSR and wider economic impacts (CI:contribution to Policy Brief for T20, Task force 3: Infrastructure investment and financing)
- 2018-2020: Impacts of high-speed rail on new firm formation - Evidence from Suzhou in China (PI: 2018/2020)
- 2018: Empirical Study in the Nodal Transport Function and Place Urban Function of China’s High-speed Rail New Towns in the Context of New Type Urbanisation (CI)
- 2016-2018: The Impact of Inter-City High-Speed Rail Network on Spatial-Economic Development in Yangtze River Delta Area: A Case Study of Suzhou Region (PI)
- 2014-2015: Developing a new framework and appraisal tool (participatory MCA) to assist decision-making of transport investment (Research Associate for the SINTROPHER project funded by the EU INTERREG 4B Programme).
- 2013-2014: Wider impacts of rail-based transport investment on urban and economic development- Literature Review (Research Associate for the SINTROPHER project funded by the EU INTERREG 4B Programme)
- 2008-2013: The Spatial-Economic Impact of High-Speed Trains: Nationally (The UK IC125) and Regionally (A British-French Comparison) (PhD Thesis)

Chia-Lin is concerned about disintegrated planning and design policy and practice and identifying key factors/causes and seeking guidance and policy implications for potential solutions and gains insight into the complexity of these issues.

interested in addressing developmental issues at small and medium-size villages, towns and cities such as poverty, decline, polarisation, peripheralisation, segregation, displacement, and social exclusion.

Relevant projects:
- Jul 2021- Jun 2023: ‘Examining intra-regional inequalities and developing pathways towards resilient and inclusive revitalisation: Theory and Practice’, funded by the ESRC-MOST UK-Taiwan research network fund for International Research Collaboration. Role: PI in the UK, in partnership with Co-I, Dr Olivier Sykes & Dr Chanyuan Wong, National Tsing Hua University, Taiwan.
- August 2021-July 2022: “Re-thinking Marginalised Railway Heritage in England’s Cities - Using Liverpool as A Pilot Study”, funded by Early Career Research and Return Fund project (ECRRF), UoL. Role: PI, in partnership with Co-I, Dr Junjie Xi, School of Architecture.
- 2017-2018: Modern Tram and Public Transport Transit Integration in Chinese Cities – A case study of Suzhou (PI), https://www.itf-oecd.org/public-transport-integration-chinese-cities
- 2013-2015: Improving Interchanges- Developing Multi-modal Passenger Rail Hubs- An Illustrated Guide for the People’s Republic of China (Asian Development Bank)

The third research theme aims to explore the social dimensions of transport provision role of social With the possibility brought about by technological breakthrough in both e- and physical forms, conventional life styles and working patterns have faced dramatic challenges while the effects of these technological breakthrough do not seem to benefit all equally- in particular a serious discretion between the range of possibility, mobility potential, and travel patterns. Her research intends to understand a new mobility paradigm and ensure social justice and spatial justice in the digital age could be taken proper care through interdisciplinary approaches.

Relevant projects:
- 2018-2023: High mobility in China? Exploring the impacts of high-speed rail on work-related life and well-being - A case of Suzhou and its neighbouring cities (PI: 2018)
- 2018-2021: HSR and social exclusion: an worldwide analysis review (International Research Collaboration)