Barrier Function and Transport Accessibility of the Border as Factors of Cross-Border Interactions

Intensive integration and cross-border regionalization have been observed at many interstate borders in Europe in recent decades. This has made the concept of barrier-based state borders extremely popular. A low border barrier is perceived by researchers as one of the necessary conditions for intensive cross-border cooperation, as well as its natural result. However, when assessing the barrier of borders, many researchers focused exclusively on the state border line itself, ignoring the transport and communication properties of the territories. The authors of the article propose their own combined method of assessing transport accessibility and border barriers, which was tested on the Russian-Kazakh and Russian-Belarusian border sections. The essence of the method is to assess the transport accessibility of border crossing points for settlements in border regions, taking into account the configuration of the transport network. The advantage of the method is the ability to compare borders with different degrees of openness. The method allows to get an idea of what part of the territory and population on both sides of the border can be involved in cross-border connections. The study showed that the Russian-Belarusian border, due to the almost complete absence of border control, has a higher transport permeability and safety of the transport network. All this ensures a high level of transport accessibility for the settlements and population of the border regions. In the Russian-Kazakh border region, the number and density of border crossing points is lower, and the network of border roads is much less well preserved. Therefore, in this section of the border, a relatively high level of transport accessibility of the border is typical for a small number of regions. In connection with the reduction of the number of checkpoints in the 2000s, the length of “blind borders”—hardly accessible to the population of these regions – has increased. A comparative analysis of the cross-border practices of the population and the results of the calculation of transport accessibility showed that the transport accessibility of the border, the barrier and the permeability of the border are potential in nature. They do not explain cross-border contacts per se. The specific territorial context, fundamental socioeconomic and political characteristics and current conditions, historical and cultural factors also influence the realization of the potential of border and neighbor accessibility.

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