Vägens betydelse för turismen : En studie om den nya E4:ans påverkan på Sundsvalls hotellmarknad

Sammanfattning: This study examines the importance of road connection to the hotel businesses of a destination. Many destinations request a reconstruction of a connected road route due to different reasons. In this case, the highway E4 Sundsvall has undergone a road route change. The main reason why this action was requested was because the highway was affecting people's health from vehicle emissions, due to being located too close to the society. This study intends to examine the direct effects of the rerouting of the road. The road that earlier passed through the center of the city is now located outside of Sundsvall. This relocation was conducted mainly due to high amounts of emissions from passing vehicles. Other factors were however also included in the decision to reroute the road. A lot of research shows that there is a strong connection between transport and tourism. This could indicate that this new road location might affect the tourism flow to Sundsvall in a negative way since less people now have to drive through the city. To examine this case, documentation from the project have been studied to understand the expected outcomes of the project. Previous research studies has also been used to gain a deeper understanding of the subject, so that comparisons and analyses can be made in this paper. Passenger statistics across the bridge of Sundsvall has also been collected. This data is used to see the activity on the road, and thus be able to draw back to the purpose of the study. The results however shows that the hotel market in Sundsvall has seen a rise in guest nights and occupied rooms since the new road construction. The project of Sundsvall E4 and previous studies implies the development of a destination. In conclusion, the increase in hotel sales might be linked to city development. This means that in the end, the road route change seems to have a positive connection to the hotel market in Sundsvall, not directly but indirectly because of the changes the city has undergone due to the relocation of the new E4 highway.