Should I Stay or Should I Go? Risk Perception and Use of Local Public Transport During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

In light of the climate crisis, the transport sector needs to be urgently transformed and the number of users of local public transport needs to be increased. However, the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic severely affected public transport with passenger numbers declining up to 80% in Germany. In addition to a general decrease in mobility during lockdowns, we can observe a shift in decision-making in regards to modes of transportation, with public transport losing out. We argue that this change in behavior can be explained by the fact that people tend to overestimate the risk of COVID-19 transmission in public transport. In order to understand risk perception in users and non-users of public transport during the pandemic, a representative survey (N = 918) in a German major city was conducted at the peak of the third wave of the pandemic in April 2021. We identified four main target groups of public transport use during the pandemic: Loyal users (n = 193), reducers (n = 175), pandemic-dropouts (n = 331) and non-users (n = 219). We found reducers (r = 0.12), pandemic-dropouts (r = 0.32) and non-users (r = 0.22) to perceive an increased perception of infection risk for public transport as compared loyal users. This increased risk perception was specific to public transport – it did not generalize to other day-to-day situations, such as going to the grocery store or visiting a hairdresser. This finding can be taken as an indication that risk perception for an infection plays a crucial role in stepping back from public transport use during the pandemic. In addition, however, there were other differences in terms of needs and concerns between the different target groups during the pandemic. Based on our findings, we discuss which tools and interventions might convince these different groups to hop-(back)-on public transport. Our study highlights how risk perception will play an important role in attracting new and former passengers and is the basis for the interventions and developments that will build a pandemic-resistant public transport in the future.

Generalized Ordered Logit Model with Testing Assumptions: A Case Study of Using Urban Light Rail in Bursa

“…The importance of rebuilding trust in public transportation was a recurrent theme in the literature [13,[23][24][25]54], and our study underscores this challenge. The observed mode shift has significant implications for urban planning and transportation policies.…”

“…The study [53] conducted in Gdansk, Poland revealed that the Covid-19 pandemic could lead to subjective safety concerns regarding public transport, resulting in a significant proportion (25 %) of participants losing confidence in its safety. The survey conducted in Germany with the participation of 918 individuals revealed that users are expected to experience lingering fear of infection related to public transport even after the pandemic [54].…”

Indonesian air medical evacuation: Analyzing readiness and proposing an integrated standard procedure

“…There is a growing body of literature on medical travel that addresses various aspects of the phenomenon, including its economic and health resource implications, demand and supply, the role of the state, and the pros and cons of promoting it. 8 However, there is a gap in the literature regarding medical travel, specifically the lack of an integrated regulation 9 , 10 and its implementation, especially in the context of medical escort services in Indonesia.…”

“…Strong regulations positively impact public perception of the safety and quality of public transportation, including medical evacuation services. 10 Robust governing regulations are integral to well-organized business processes that deliver high-quality services to the public.…”

“…There is growing body of literature on medical travel that addresses various aspects of the phenomenon, including its economic and health resource implications, demand and supply, the role of the state, and the pros and cons of promoting it. 8 However, there is a gap in the literature regarding medical travel, specifically in the lack of an unintegrated regulation, 9 , 10 and its implementation especially in the context of medical escort in Indonesia. To create an efficient air medical evacuation system, a central administration should establish a national policy involving all the related institutions, including the Ministry of Transportation, the Ministry of Health, the Association of Medical Colleges, professional organizations in aviation medicine and related paramedical professions, the Ministry of Tourism, hospital associations, and other institutions associated with medical evacuation services.…”