High-speed Rail Station, Service Innovations And Temporary Office Space For Mobile Workers

Abstract : Major investments on High Speed Rail (HSR) systems have been carried out all over the world. The existing and planned lines generate many expectations in served cities in terms of economic growth. In particular, HSR is intended to increase the number of business travellers and to foster economic activity by encouraging the development of offices in and around the railway stations. Using innovation service theories, we show that HSR service can be analysed as service innovations. Based on the case study of France and Italy, we sustain that these innovations can be of interest of both public and private actors in terms of urban renewal. We show that, in these two countries, there is the same kind of "behaviour" with respect to these innovations in terms of producing temporary office spaces in and around rail stations. The result is that HSR stations become working spaces and therefore important "places".