On July 6, 2026, the International Symposium on Transportation and Urban Synergy Development and China’s 150 Years of Railway Development was successfully held at the Transportation Equipment Museum Auditorium of Beijing Jiaotong University. The event was jointly organized by the International Association for China Planning (IACP) and the journal Urban Rapid Rail Transit, and co-organized by the Institute of Territorial Spatial and Transportation Synergy Development (TOD), the Institute of Transportation Culture and Heritage Conservation, and the Sustainable Transportation Innovation Center at Beijing Jiaotong University.
As one of the important pre-conference academic events of the 2026 IACP Annual Conference, the symposium took the 150-year development history of Chinese railways as an important point of departure. It focused on key issues such as transportation and urban synergy, the co-evolution of railways and urban space, and global sustainable railway development. Scholars and experts from China, the United Kingdom, Canada, Italy, Japan, Vietnam, and other countries gathered in Beijing for a high-level international dialogue across disciplines and regions.
The event was moderated by Professor Chun Zhang from the School of Architecture and Design at Beijing Jiaotong University, who also serves as Executive Editor-in-Chief of Urban Rail Transit. IACP Chair Zhenhua Chen and Professor Baoming Han, Honorary President of Urban Rapid Rail Transit and Editor-in-Chief of Urban Rail Transit, delivered opening remarks. The speakers noted that the 150-year history of Chinese railways not only represents an important trajectory of modern transportation infrastructure development in China, but also provides rich experience for understanding the interactions among transportation systems, urban space, and regional development. They expressed the hope that the symposium would further strengthen academic exchanges between China and the international community in transportation planning, urban development, and sustainable infrastructure, while promoting mutual learning across countries and regions.
During the keynote presentation session, Professor Emeritus Roger Vickerman from the University of Kent, Wang Kai, former President of the China Academy of Urban Planning and Design and National Engineering Survey and Design Master, Professor Anthony David Perl from Simon Fraser University, Professor Wenjie Wu, Dean of the School of Urban Design at Wuhan University, Associate Professor Francesca Pagliara from the Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering at the University of Naples Federico II, Associate Professor Kojiro Sho from the Department of Urban Engineering at the University of Tokyo, and Associate Professor Gaohong She, Executive Dean of the Institute of Rail Transit Cultural Heritage at Beijing Jiaotong University, delivered presentations on a wide range of topics.
Their presentations addressed the regional impacts of high-speed rail in Europe, urban-transportation integration in the later stages of China’s urbanization, the evolving urban value of New York Grand Central Terminal, the relationship between the built environment and travel satisfaction, the development of 15-minute living circles around high-speed rail stations, the impacts of Japan’s Shinkansen on employment patterns, and the sustainable regeneration of railway heritage.
The presentations reviewed historical experiences in railway development in both China and the wider world, while also responding to shared challenges faced by contemporary cities and transportation systems. These include station-city integration, regional coordination, low-carbon transition, urban renewal, transportation heritage conservation, and sustainable development. Drawing on different national contexts, disciplinary perspectives, and practical experiences, the speakers highlighted the complex and profound relationships between transportation infrastructure and urban development.
During the discussion session, participating faculty members and students engaged in active exchanges with the speakers on topics such as integrated railway and urban development, renewal strategies for high-speed rail station areas, low-carbon transportation transition, adaptive reuse of railway heritage, and international comparative experience. The discussion was lively and in-depth, demonstrating the academic value of interdisciplinary engagement across transportation planning, urban studies, regional development, and heritage conservation.
During the symposium, international participants and IACP representatives also visited the Museumof the China Academy of Railway Sciences. The visit provided the international experts with an opportunity to learn more about China’s railway technological innovation, engineering practices, and historical development. During the visit, the participants held in-depth discussions with leaders and experts from the China Academy of Railway Sciences on China’s railway development experience, global sustainable railway development, international railway cooperation, and future technological innovation. This visit further deepened the international participants’ understanding of China’s railway achievements and innovation system, while laying a strong foundation for long-term exchanges and collaboration among experts in railway development, transportation, and urban planning in China and around the world.
The International Association for China Planning has long been committed to building bridges between China planning studies and the international academic community. By promoting global scholarly dialogue on Chinese cities and regions, IACP continues to support knowledge exchange and collaborative research across borders. As an important pre-conference academic event of the 2026 IACP Annual Conference, this symposium provided a valuable platform for Chinese and international scholars to exchange ideas on transportation and urban synergy. It also further expanded IACP’s international collaboration network in the fields of sustainable transportation, infrastructure planning, and urban development.
The successful organization of the International Symposium on Transportation and Urban Synergy Development and China’s 150 Years of Railway Development offered a systematic reflection on the 150-year development experience of Chinese railways and provided diverse perspectives for the future of global sustainable railway and urban development. The symposium and related visit further promoted mutual learning between China and the international academic community in transportation, urban, and regional planning, injecting new momentum into future interdisciplinary and international collaboration.
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