Spatial Distribution Characteristics and Influential Factors of Major Towns in Guizhou Province Analyzed with ArcGIS
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
This research aims to investigate the spatial distribution characteristics and influential factors of major towns in Guizhou Province, using the 97 major towns identified in the Guizhou Provincial Town System Plan (2015-2030) as the research object. The rich practicality and innovation can be reflected in this study, but a series of doubts still need to be answered.
1：In Figure 1, The font of the marked English is not uniform, and it is recommended to also mark each city in Guizhou Province in its corresponding position.
2: In formula 2, The relevant meanings of m, h and k values are not reflected in the investigation.
3: Lines 42-43, Related description need strong references (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcis.2022.12.160 â‘¡https://doi.org/10.1007/s11053-023-10202-7 â‘¢https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oceaneng.2023.114949 )as supporting basis.
4: In Lines 180-191, There is no analysis of the theoretical need proximity distance (rE)in this section. Please explain the reason for setting formula 4.
Minor editing of English language required
Author Response
Point 1: In Figure 1, The font of the marked English is not uniform, and it is recommended to also mark each city in Guizhou Province in its corresponding position.
Response 1:The range of graphics in this section is too small to label them all.
Point 2: In formula 2, The relevant meanings of m, h and k values are not reflected in the investigation.
Response 2:The relevant meanings have been added in the article.
Point 3: Lines 42-43, Related description need strong references (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcis.2022.12.160 â‘¡https://doi.org/10.1007/s11053-023-10202-7 â‘¢https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oceaneng.2023.114949 )as supporting basis.
Response 3:Relevant literature has been added.
Point 4: In Lines 180-191, There is no analysis of the theoretical need proximity distance (rE)in this section. Please explain the reason for setting formula 4.
Response 4:My formula is mainly a further calculation to illustrate the characteristics of the urban clusters presented by the 97 major towns in each city and state in Guizhou Province.
Regarding the English translation of the article, we will apply for professional correction by the translation service provided by the journal after the content of the article is determined.
Author Response File: 
Author Response.docx
Reviewer 2 Report
Dear authors,
Firstly, I would like to thank you for your work in this field.
You did a good job!
After extensive reading, I only have a few comments for the current version, which are not many but essential.
For revision details, please see the followings:
[1] I suggest you add more keywords and sort the words alphabetically. It can help you improve the manuscript's exposure.
[2] I suggest you re-structure the abstract with the following steps: Research background + Research intention + Methodology & Data research + Specific research content + Main finding + Conclusion from the main finding + Research meaning, Applying experience, etc.
[3] line 1, the paper type is an article. Please revise it.
[4] the deep of the introduction is extremely not enough. I suggest you re-order it with the following structure: Development background + research background + research review + research aim + paper overview.
[5] I don't see the research innovation/necessity because when we open the municipal map of Guizhou, we can see the major town's distribution already. All of the research results can be seen. No need to go through this research.
[6] The town has a range of areas, but in all of your figures, just a dot to present the town on the map. How did you justify the dot? Why did you choose this dot as the representative location of the town? What is your standard?
[7] Where is Guizhou? You are writing an English manuscript and submitting it to an international journal. Your readers will be from worldwide, and not all of them are familiar with the geo-information of China. I also suggest you clarify this case country in your title. Then, the title is a little bit long. Please shorter it.
[8] line 110, How did you classify these categories? Then, what can we get through this category presentation? What's the value of your research?
[9] I suggest you separate the discussion and conclusion chapters into two individual chapters. Discussion first, then the Conclusions chapter.
[10] I suggest you reorder the conclusions chapter with the following structure: research issue + research result + research value + research direction in the future. Also, it is named Conclusions, not Conclusion.
[11] the deep of the influencing factors chapter is extremely insufficient. Why did you choose these factors? What can you get through these analyses? What is the value of these analyses? Also, what can we get through your study? Could you please provide any specific case studies in each section of factor analyses?
[12] I suggest you add a figure to show the geo-info about this province or combine the geo-info of this province into Figure 1 or Figure 2.
[13] Here is a critical problem: the current number of reference citations is absolutely insufficient. Normally, for standard research and the length of this kind of research, the references should be more than 60/70. But the current number is 32, far from the standard. It means this manuscript lacks essential citations or analysis. I recommend you cite the following references, which can help you improve the quality of this manuscript.
1-2 for Towns in Guizhou, the manuscript's objective direction.
Yang, Chunyu. "Evaluating the symbiosis status of tourist towns: The case of Guizhou Province, China." Annals of tourism research 72 (2018): 109-125.
Gao, Shunqian. "Changes in and Patterns of the Tradeoffs and Synergies of Production-Living-Ecological Space: A Case Study of Longli County, Guizhou Province, China." Sustainability 14.14 (2022): 8910.
3-5 for Spatial distribution, the manuscript's research method direction.
Ding, Anqi. "Links between the pandemic and urban green spaces, a perspective on spatial indices of landscape garden cities in China." Sustainable Cities and Society 85 (2022): 104046.
Zhan, Zirui. "Frontier of rural revitalization in China: A spatial analysis of national rural tourist towns." Land 11.6 (2022): 812.
Xie, Yuchen. "Spatial pattern and formation mechanism of rural tourism resources in China: Evidence from 1470 national leisure villages." ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information 11.8 (2022): 455.
If my comments are properly considered and followed, I have no further comments on this manuscript.
Again, I have a high comment on your current contribution. All my upon-revision recommendations are intended to help this manuscript be more readable for readers.
Minor check
Author Response
Response to Reviewer 2 Comments
Point 1: I suggest you add more keywords and sort the words alphabetically. It can help you improve the manuscript's exposure.
Response 1:Keywords have been added and rearranged.
Point 2: I suggest you re-structure the abstract with the following steps: Research background + Research intention + Methodology & Data research + Specific research content + Main finding + Conclusion from the main finding + Research meaning, Applying experience, etc.
Response 2:The abstract has been reconstructed according to the relevant recommendations.
Point3: line 1, the paper type is an article. Please revise it.
Response 3:The background description has been re-added and the original statement has been removed.
Point4: the deep of the introduction is extremely not enough. I suggest you re-order it with the following structure: Development background + research background + research review + research aim + paper overview.
Response 4:The introduction section has been reworked for clarification and adjustment.
Point5: I don't see the research innovation/necessity because when we open the municipal map of Guizhou, we can see the major town's distribution already. All of the research results can be seen. No need to go through this research.
Response 5:The starting point of this study is to present the need for future enhanced planning and construction in transportation, culture, and policy in the context of national urbanization, which is still different from the current status quo that already exists.
Point6: The town has a range of areas, but in all of your figures, just a dot to present the town on the map. How did you justify the dot? Why did you choose this dot as the representative location of the town? What is your standard?
Response 6:The points here are where the major towns are located, but because of the clustering nature, they cannot be marked in the map, and these points are obtained from the Guizhou Province Town System Plan (2015-2030).
Point7: Where is Guizhou? You are writing an English manuscript and submitting it to an international journal. Your readers will be from worldwide, and not all of them are familiar with the geo-information of China. I also suggest you clarify this case country in your title. Then, the title is a little bit long. Please shorter it.
Response 7:The specific description of Guizhou province is detailed in section 2.1 of the article, and is accompanied by a geographical map.
Point8: line 110, How did you classify these categories? Then, what can we get through this category presentation? What's the value of your research?
Response8:The classification here is based on the specific functions currently undertaken by the 97 major towns. Through the classification, readers can see the roles of these towns, which will facilitate the strengthening of relevant facilities and policy guidance in the urbanization process at a later stage.
Point9: I suggest you separate the discussion and conclusion chapters into two individual chapters. Discussion first, then the Conclusions chapter.
Response9:It has been reworked here.
Point10: I suggest you reorder the conclusions chapter with the following structure: research issue + research result + research value + research direction in the future. Also, it is named Conclusions, not Conclusion.
Response10:Modified as suggested.
Point11: the deep of the influencing factors chapter is extremely insufficient. Why did you choose these factors? What can you get through these analyses? What is the value of these analyses? Also, what can we get through your study? Could you please provide any specific case studies in each section of factor analyses?
Response11:These factors were selected because they are currently found to be the main factors that affect the development of towns and cities in the process of urbanization construction and development. The analysis is only to show that the further development of urbanization and the construction of urban agglomerations needs to be strengthened in these areas. Regarding specific cases, there are difficulties in providing them at present.
Point12: I suggest you add a figure to show the geo-info about this province or combine the geo-info of this province into Figure 1 or Figure 2.
Response12:A map of the geographical location of Guizhou province has been added in section 2.1.
Point13: Here is a critical problem: the current number of reference citations is absolutely insufficient. Normally, for standard research and the length of this kind of research, the references should be more than 60/70. But the current number is 32, far from the standard. It means this manuscript lacks essential citations or analysis. I recommend you cite the following references, which can help you improve the quality of this manuscript.
Response13:The suggested relevant literature has been added to the references section here, the total number is really low and no more have been found about the directly relevant ones so far.
Regarding the English translation of the article, we will apply for professional correction by the translation service provided by the journal after the content of the article is determined.
Author Response File: Author Response.docx
Reviewer 3 Report
The paper attempts to investigate the spatial distribution characteristics and influential factors of major towns in Guizhou Province. This is an important issue in spatial planning. However in the reviewer’s opinion the paper should be improved, if the authors agree, on the basis of the following observations/comments.
Lines 25-26: it is the well-being of the citizens/residents not of the cities and towns.
In Section “2.1. Study Area Overview”, it would be useful to integrate a geomorphological map of the wider area, so that the mountainous character of Guizhou Province can be visual understood and also its difference from the adjacent regions.
These 97 towns are identified in the Guizhou Province Town System Plan as “major” based on their population?
Lines 97-103 are a bit confusing. As I understand it in the urban spatial pattern "one core, one group, two circles, six groups, and multiple points", Guiyang is the "one core", Guiyang-Ansun and Zunyi are the "two circles", Liupanshui, Bijie, Tongren, Kaili, Duyun, and Xinyi are the "six groups" and all the other regional central and essential node cities are the "multiple points", but what represents the "one group"?
The "six groups" is different from the "six town clusters"?
I am not sure that "radiate" is the right verb, what do you mean exactly? That make them stand out?
Also a map showing this pattern would be useful.
Maybe (if you agree) it is better to precede the analysis/primary structure and then say that this pattern can be called "one core, one group, two circles, six groups, and multiple points"
Lines 108-110: you state “the spatial distribution of major towns has been recognized as a pivotal factor in guiding economic and industrial growth in the area”. Is their spatial distribution or their specialization?
Figures, Legend: Cities boundaries are a linear element.
Lines 113-116: The geographic concentration index (?) is defined as ??, the number of productive functional cities distributed in city ?, divided by ?, the total number of major towns in Guizhou province, and expressed as a ratio of ?, the total number of cities and towns in Guizhou province.
You use both the terms cities and towns, what is their relationship (you also mention state in line 141 and prefecture in the Figure, all of which are inside the Province)? Also you say “the number of productive functional cities distributed in city i”, you mean cities in a region i or functional towns in city i?
What do you mean with productive functional cities? is there any relation with the five categories? In Figure 1 you depict the Major Towns (with blue points) and then in Figure 3 the same towns in the legend are called productive functional cities.
Sub-section 4.1. Transportation Road Network is very important for the growth of a city/town but what is you point exactly? This network was created because the cities were already established and located there and maybe then helped their development or do you mean that the cities located there because of the transport network? How exactly the Transportation Road Network influenced the spatial distribution?
Figure 5: The colors used (shades of red) do not really depict topography in the best way. Have you used some reference for the scenic spots, if yes you should mention it.
What is the relation of Topography and Terrain (sub-section 4.1.1) and Tourism Resources (sub0section 4.2.2) with the five categories that you have identified?
Lines 270-272: You states that, as might be expected, tourism services have developed where tourist attractions with 4A level and above are located. How does this affect the spatial distribution of cities and towns? It does influence their specialisation and the services they provide but how is a factor of spatial distribution? (as you state in Section 5, they “serve as the conditions and basis for the development of major towns in Guizhou Province”)
In Sub-section 4.3 you state that based on the Guizhou Provincial Urban System Plan (2015-2030), new urban areas and regional central cities were created. These new areas are part of the 97 major towns? All the factors that you have mentioned influenced their location? If yes you should mention this from the beginning, so that the reader can understand why you examine all these factors and you believe that they influence spatial distribution.
Line 325: I think you should make clear the relation between cities, towns and states (as I have mentioned in a previous comment)
You have conclusion both in section 5 and 6. Maybe you should have just one Section
You Conclusion (section 6) is very weak
In lines 56-59 you mention that “Through the investigation, it can also demonstrate the towns' overall distribution features and regional distinctions, thereby contributing to the future improvement of the Guizhou Provincial Town System Plan and urban planning in Guizhou Province.” But you do not include any suggestions in your conclusions.
Minor editing of English language required
Author Response
Response to Reviewer 3 Comments
Point 1: Lines 25-26: it is the well-being of the citizens/residents not of the cities and towns.
Response 1:This content has been modified.
Point 2: In Section “2.1. Study Area Overview”, it would be useful to integrate a geomorphological map of the wider area, so that the mountainous character of Guizhou Province can be visual understood and also its difference from the adjacent regions.
Response 2: A map of the geographical location of Guizhou Province has been added here to enhance the illustration.
Point3: These 97 towns are identified in the Guizhou Province Town System Plan as “major” based on their population?
Response 3: This is a direct quote from the official statement given in Guizhou Province Town System Plan (2015-2030).
Point4: Lines 97-103 are a bit confusing. As I understand it in the urban spatial pattern "one core, one group, two circles, six groups, and multiple points", Guiyang is the "one core", Guiyang-Ansun and Zunyi are the "two circles", Liupanshui, Bijie, Tongren, Kaili, Duyun, and Xinyi are the "six groups" and all the other regional central and essential node cities are the "multiple points", but what represents the "one group"?
Response 4:This is the official positioning of the current spatial planning of the major towns in Guizhou province, and it may be a matter of translation, with the group representing the urban cluster.
Point5: The "six groups" is different from the "six town clusters"?
Response 5:This is a meaning, may be that there is a difference in the statement and translation.
Point6: I am not sure that "radiate" is the right verb, what do you mean exactly? That make them stand out?
Response 6:Radiation in this context mainly means that it will have some positive impact on the surrounding villages and towns.
Point7: Maybe (if you agree) it is better to precede the analysis/primary structure and then say that this pattern can be called "one core, one group, two circles, six groups, and multiple points"
Response 7:Agree to use this statement, has been revised.
Point8: Lines 108-110: you state “the spatial distribution of major towns has been recognized as a pivotal factor in guiding economic and industrial growth in the area”. Is their spatial distribution or their specialization?
Response8:The meaning here refers to the spatial distribution of the major towns, that is, the existing situation.
Point9: Lines 113-116: The geographic concentration index () is defined as , the number of productive functional cities distributed in city , divided by , the total number of major towns in Guizhou province, and expressed as a ratio of , the total number of cities and towns in Guizhou province.
Response9:The enhancements and corrections have been reworked here.
Point10: You use both the terms cities and towns, what is their relationship (you also mention state in line 141 and prefecture in the Figure, all of which are inside the Province)? Also you say “the number of productive functional cities distributed in city i”, you mean cities in a region i or functional towns in city i?
Response10:There is an expression error here, which has been corrected. The towns, cities and counties involved in the article are all within one province and are different name terms for town planning in China.
Point11: What do you mean with productive functional cities? is there any relation with the five categories? In Figure 1 you depict the Major Towns (with blue points) and then in Figure 3 the same towns in the legend are called productive functional cities.
Response11:Here is a writing error, which has been corrected. The five categories here refer to the current classification of major towns in Guizhou Province according to their functions.
Point12:Sub-section 4.1. Transportation Road Network is very important for the growth of a city/town but what is you point exactly? This network was created because the cities were already established and located there and maybe then helped their development or do you mean that the cities located there because of the transport network? How exactly the Transportation Road Network influenced the spatial distribution?
Response12:At present, Guizhou province has realized the county to county highway, therefore, through the analysis of the spatial distribution of major towns, it can be found that transportation has a great influence factor on the agglomeration of towns, indeed some towns become the core because of the developed transportation, which is mainly to show the importance of transportation to the development of towns.
Point13: Figure 5: The colors used (shades of red) do not really depict topography in the best way. Have you used some reference for the scenic spots, if yes you should mention it.
Response13:The chart here shows this color mainly because Guizhou is the only province without plains, so the topographical differences are not very obvious and the chart does not use places of interest for reference.
Point14: Figure 5: The colors used (shades of red) do not really depict topography in the best way. Have you used some reference for the scenic spots, if yes you should mention it.
Response14:The chart here shows this color mainly because Guizhou is the only province without plains, so the topographical differences are not very obvious and the chart does not use places of interest for reference.
Point15: What is the relation of Topography and Terrain (sub-section 4.1.1) and Tourism Resources (sub0section 4.2.2) with the five categories that you have identified?
Response15:The main point here is to illustrate that there are different tourist resources distributed in different topographical composition of towns, and among the five types of towns, there is also a category of typical tourist towns, which plays a role in strengthening the description.
Point16: Lines 270-272: You states that, as might be expected, tourism services have developed where tourist attractions with 4A level and above are located. How does this affect the spatial distribution of cities and towns? It does influence their specialisation and the services they provide but how is a factor of spatial distribution? (as you state in Section 5, they “serve as the conditions and basis for the development of major towns in Guizhou Province”)
Response16: It should be noted here that the development of tourism services will strengthen the agglomeration of town spaces and form urban clusters with more agglomeration effect, because Guizhou province has very rich tourism resources and tourism is an important industry that needs to strengthen its services to enhance urbanization.
Point17: In Sub-section 4.3 you state that based on the Guizhou Provincial Urban System Plan (2015-2030), new urban areas and regional central cities were created. These new areas are part of the 97 major towns? All the factors that you have mentioned influenced their location? If yes you should mention this from the beginning, so that the reader can understand why you examine all these factors and you believe that they influence spatial distribution.
Response17:The 97 points here for major towns include the creation of new districts, all factors that affect the planning and location of the spatial distribution of towns, as re-stated in the background section of the article.
Point18: Line 325: I think you should make clear the relation between cities, towns and states (as I have mentioned in a previous comment)
Response18:Changes have been made in the article.
Point19: You have conclusion both in section 5 and 6. Maybe you should have just one Section
You Conclusion (section 6) is very weak
Response19:These two sections have been integrated and modified.
Point20: In lines 56-59 you mention that “Through the investigation, it can also demonstrate the towns' overall distribution features and regional distinctions, thereby contributing to the future improvement of the Guizhou Provincial Town System Plan and urban planning in Guizhou Province.” But you do not include any suggestions in your conclusions.
Response20:This section was weak and was rewritten and strengthened.
Regarding the English translation of the article, we will apply for professional correction by the translation service provided by the journal after the content of the article is determined.
Author Response File: Author Response.docx
Round 2
Reviewer 1 Report
After a revision, there are still many areas that need to be modified in this article, and some questions are not well answered. I believe that significant modifications and improvements are needed before proceeding to the next step（reject or go on modified）.
1:In Figure 1, the lack of scale is a necessary element for professional images of geographic information systems, which reflects the author's unprofessional scientific research literacy.
2: The 3 problem in the first revision was not modified, which is a serious error returned by the author.
3:All formulas in this article have not been annotated, which affects the authenticity of this study. So, can I assume that all the formulas were created by the author himself?
Extensive editing of English language required
Author Response
Response to Reviewer 1 Comments
Point 1: In Figure 1, the lack of scale is a necessary element for professional images of geographic information systems, which reflects the author's unprofessional scientific research literacy.
Response 1:The location map of Guizhou province has been reworked, and all other maps covered in the article have also been corrected.
Point 2: The 3 problem in the first revision was not modified, which is a serious error returned by the author.
Response 2:All three literatures have been added for citation.
Point 3: All formulas in this article have not been annotated, which affects the authenticity of this study. So, can I assume that all the formulas were created by the author himself?
Response 3:All formulas covered in the article are marked with citations.
Reviewer 2 Report
No further comments from my side.
Author Response
Response to Reviewer 2 Comments
Based on your last comments, this round of revision has been carried out with the addition of literature, correction of figures, and revision of conclusions, and your criticism is requested.
Reviewer 3 Report
The authors have revised the paper according to the comments. Some more observations/comments.
Since “productive functional cities” are essential the “major cities” you can mention it in Sub-section 3.2 (you use the term “productive functional cities” in your figures). Also do not use the term “productive functional towns” in the article and “productive functional cities” in your figures. Otherwise there is risk to confuse the readers.
In Sub-Section 4.1 you also mention railroad network, thus I think is better to tiled it as “Transportation Network”
In Sub-Section 4.1, I think that it is important to highlight that some towns have developed further (“have become the core”) due to the development of the transportation, as you mention on your responds from the 1 Round. Also, in your responses from Round 1 you mention that “major towns include the creation of new districts” which is important in relation to what is mentioned in the text, namely that “The analysis confirms that traffic arteries in Guizhou province cover virtually all major towns”
Sub-Section 4.1: I think it is better to say the “the road network” instead of traffic road network
Sub-Section 4.1: you mean “different types of major towns” instead of “different genres”?
In section 4.2.2, I think you should incorporate you Response “It should be noted here that the development of tourism services will strengthen the agglomeration of town spaces and form urban clusters with more agglomeration effect, because Guizhou province has very rich tourism resources and tourism is an important industry that needs to strengthen its services to enhance urbanization.”
It is not correct to have first the Conclusion and then the Discussion. You should reorganize this Section.
Minor editing of English language required
Author Response
Response to Reviewer 3 Comments
Point 1: Since “productive functional cities” are essential the “major cities” you can mention it in Sub-section 3.2 (you use the term “productive functional cities” in your figures). Also do not use the term “productive functional towns” in the article and “productive functional cities” in your figures. Otherwise there is risk to confuse the readers.
Response 1:In the article, the term "productive functional towns" has been standardized and all of them have been revised in the chart.
Point 2: In Sub-Section 4.1 you also mention railroad network, thus I think is better to tiled it as “Transportation Network”
Response 2: In the article, all the words "railroad network" are changed to "transportation network".
Point3: In Sub-Section 4.1, I think that it is important to highlight that some towns have developed further (“have become the core”) due to the development of the transportation, as you mention on your responds from the 1 Round. Also, in your responses from Round 1 you mention that “major towns include the creation of new districts” which is important in relation to what is mentioned in the text, namely that “The analysis confirms that traffic arteries in Guizhou province cover virtually all major towns”
Response 3: This section has been rewritten and reorganized based on the recommendations.
Point4: Sub-Section 4.1: I think it is better to say the “the road network” instead of traffic road network
Response 4:Here "traffic road network" has been replaced with "the road network".
Point5: Sub-Section 4.1: you mean “different types of major towns” instead of “different genres”?
Response 5:What I'm trying to express here is the different types.
Point6: In section 4.2.2, I think you should incorporate you Response “It should be noted here that the development of tourism services will strengthen the agglomeration of town spaces and form urban clusters with more agglomeration effect, because Guizhou province has very rich tourism resources and tourism is an important industry that needs to strengthen its services to enhance urbanization.”
Response 6:This section has been modified and added.
Point7: It is not correct to have first the Conclusion and then the Discussion. You should reorganize this Section.
Response 7:This section has been reorganized to contain both conclusions and future work.
Round 3
Reviewer 1 Report
I think the author's modifications have been very perfect, which meets the requirements for acceptance and publication.
