推動文化觀光以尋求地方再發展的新契機，是這幾年台灣許多鄉鎮所依循的發展模式。相較於主要幹線，性質屬於地方鐵道的支線，其觀光化的轉型，對於沿線的鄉鎮或村落而言，帶來了觀光人潮，且增加地方經濟收益。支線最主要的觀光資源以過往的產業文化還有保留下來的閒置產業空間為主，這些閒置空間在觀光化下重新再利用。因此，本研究以社區利用產業資源為地方發展的主體，並推動文化觀光發展的概念，探討地方觀光商品化現象，並分析對地方發展的影響。
研究結果顯示，車埕開始推動文化觀光後為地方發展帶來了新契機。首先，透過文化觀光讓地方居民重新尋找與認識地方文化，有了這一層認知，除了可以保存地方文化並且亦能賦予地方產業文化創意的加值；其次，以統計數據來看，遊客人數逐年增加，為地方帶來的經濟效益包括有：導覽解說的收益讓地方除了申請計劃經費外，能有自主的資金來源；而以地方產業為主而設計的各項文化商品，由於多了文化創意的加值與具有地方特色，增加了遊客的購買率；並且有部份居民開始回到地方就業。
Many townships in Taiwan are launching the so-called cultural tourism in an attempt to revive local economic development. Compared with the main lines, spur railroad tracks are important in the development of local townships, because they bring in the tourists and vitalize the economy. Spur tracks are important tourism resources, because along the tracks tourists are able to experience the traditional industrial cultures. This research is focused on how local communities make use of the industrial cultures to develop their own unique local tourism. It is also focused on the cultural and special commodification that results from cultural tourism, and on the influence such commodification has on local development.
The research findings show that Che-Cheng has initiated new opportunities since it began to promote cultural tourism in 1990s. Through cultural tourism, local residents could rediscover their own traditional culture, then preserve it, and re-position it with creativity. It shows that the number of tourists has been increasing, so the tourism brings about economic benefits, including government subsidies which can be put to great use, various kinds of commodities which are abundant in local culture and very welcomed among tourists. Besides, local employment rate is also boosted because more jobs are now available.
