Assessing the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on passengers' reliance on public transport

Long Cheng, Zhe Ning, Da Lei, Xinmei Cai and Xuewu Chen

Journal of Transport Geography, 2024, vol. 119, issue C

Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly influenced travel choices and the effective functioning of public transport. However, research into the pandemic's effects on public transport, specifically considering the combined impact of both risk perception and prevention tactics, remains limited. This study aims to examine the effect of COVID-19 on passengers' reliance on public transport, considering their risk perception and the strategies implemented for pandemic prevention. Data for this research were gathered through a questionnaire survey conducted in Chengdu, China, in March 2022, during a major outbreak of the pandemic in the city. Employing the Theory of Planned Behavior, the study establishes a structural equation model to analyze the questionnaire data and unveil the COVID-19's impact on passengers' reliance on public transport. The analysis shows that people's perception of infection risk has a significant impact on travel preference, and they pay attention to the convenience of public transport as well as safety. Based on the analysis, relevant suggestions are proposed from the perspectives of passengers, operators, and the government to improve the safety and efficiency of public transport.

Keywords: Public transport; Travel behavior; Theory of planned behavior; Structural equation modeling (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0966692324001601

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jotrge:v:119:y:2024:i:c:s0966692324001601

DOI: 10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2024.103951

Access Statistics for this article

Journal of Transport Geography is currently edited by Frank Witlox

More articles in Journal of Transport Geography from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().