Download This PaperThe Examination of the Relationship between Internet Use at Home, on the Move and Trip Frequencies of Public Transport and Private Vehicle Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic
15 Pages Posted: 4 May 2022
Abstract
The Internet has changed the way people travel significantly. It allows people to reorganise activities in time and space. Due to its important policy implications, a body of empirical research has emerged to examine their relationship spanning several decades. One of the less researched areas is the role where people use the Internet in the use of different types of transport modes. Recently, their relationship might have become more complicated due to the coronavirus pandemic changing the extent to which people use the Internet and travel. Since future outbreaks are highly likely to happen, understanding the changes in their relationship during this unprecedented time is critical to make more resilient transport plans. This study utilised three-years of National Travel Survey data in the UK and statistical models to answer two research question: 1) what are the roles played by Internet use at home and on the move in public transport and car trip generation for non-commuting purposes?; and 2) how did the roles change during the COVID-19 pandemic? Our results showed that Internet use promoted more trips, and the location of the Internet use matters. Internet use at home generated more trips by car while Internet use on the move promoted more public transport trips. However, people who used the Internet more often at home or on the move during the COVID-19 pandemic generated more total and auto trips for non-commuting purposes. Our results revealed an important role of ICTs in travel demand during the outbreak period and raises potential social exclusion issues.
Keywords: Internet use, Travel behaviour, COVID-19
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation