Analysis of Construction Networks and Structural Characteristics of Pearl River Delta and Surrounding Cities Based on Multiple Connections

The Pearl River Delta (PRD) is one of three world-class city clusters in China, which is important for the strategical deployment of the national "Belt and Road". Based on nighttime lighting data, Baidu index, and train stopping times, this study analyzed the network of spatial patterns and structural evolution of the PRD and surrounding cities via social network analysis and dynamic network visualization, providing new perspectives and ideas for the study of intercity linkages and urban networks. The results provide decision support to the government for urban cluster planning. From 2014 to 2020, the economic network evolved from a uniaxial structure to an "inverted V" structure. The transportation network evolved from a uniaxial structure to a "o" structure. The information network did not show any obvious structural changes during its development, except for a star-shaped radial structure. The PRD city cluster and its surrounding cities exhibited a spatially non-uniform distribution in terms of spatial connections. The total connections between Guangzhou and Foshan and the surrounding cities in terms of economic, transportation, and information functions account for 30%, 28%, and 10% of the total urban connections, respectively. The graph entropy growth rates of the PRD city cluster and surrounding cities in economic, transportation, and information networks from 2014 to 2020 were 39.9%, 115.4%, and 5.1%, respectively. The network structures of economic and transportation networks stabilized eventually. The information network structures are stable.