IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v13y2021i1p364-d474104.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Mobility Behaviour in View of the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic—Public Transport Users in Gdansk Case Study

Author

Listed:
  • Adam Przybylowski

    (Department of Transport and Logistics, Gdynia Maritime University, 81-225 Gdynia, Poland)

  • Sandra Stelmak

    (Department of Transport and Logistics, Gdynia Maritime University, 81-225 Gdynia, Poland)

  • Michal Suchanek

    (Department of Economics and Management of Transport Companies, University of Gdansk, 80-309 Gdańsk, Poland)

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic, like an earthquake, shocked our civilization and is still having a devastating effect on our lives. Guaranteeing an appropriate level of safety in the conditions of an epidemic is a highly problematic issue due to the subjectivism of social individuals, their diverse attitudes, and past life experiences. Taking into account the World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines regarding the pandemic, authorities all around the world have reacted by issuing the necessary sets of advice and legal acts. This resulted in immediate and severe implications on mobility styles. The purpose of this paper was to investigate the impact of COVID-19 on mobility behaviours with special regard to public transport users, in terms of their willingness to travel and their safety criteria perceptions. The city of Gdańsk, in Poland, located on the Baltic Sea, has been taken as an example. The hypothesis was as follows: the epidemic phenomenon may substantially affect mobility behaviours in terms of subjective levels of safety and the mental comfort of public transport users, resulting in avoiding this form of transport. In accordance with the survey results, carried out among the users, 90% of respondents resigned or limited their usage. Almost 75% of them plan to return to using public transport when the epidemic situation has stabilized. The others, unfortunately, have completely lost hope that public transport will ever be safe. These results indicate decisively that the future of public transport in cities, and the willingness of passengers to use it once the epidemic is over, depends majorly on the perceived comfort and safety during the epidemic. This means that transport policies should be focused on enhancing these perceptions and making sure that the image of public transport is not in further decline; otherwise, it could mean an almost impossible effort to encourage passengers to return to using sustainable modes of transport in the future.

Suggested Citation

  • Adam Przybylowski & Sandra Stelmak & Michal Suchanek, 2021. "Mobility Behaviour in View of the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic—Public Transport Users in Gdansk Case Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-12, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:1:p:364-:d:474104
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/1/364/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/1/364/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Giovanni Bonaccorsi & Francesco Pierri & Matteo Cinelli & Andrea Flori & Alessandro Galeazzi & Francesco Porcelli & Ana Lucia Schmidt & Carlo Michele Valensise & Antonio Scala & Walter Quattrociocchi , 2020. "Economic and social consequences of human mobility restrictions under COVID-19," Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 117(27), pages 15530-15535, July.
    2. Ho Fai Chan & Ahmed Skali & David Savage & David Stadelmann & Benno Torgler, 2020. "Risk Attitudes and Human Mobility during the COVID-19 Pandemic," Papers 2006.06078, arXiv.org.
    3. Tiziana Campisi & Socrates Basbas & Anastasios Skoufas & Nurten Akgün & Dario Ticali & Giovanni Tesoriere, 2020. "The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on the Resilience of Sustainable Mobility in Sicily," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(21), pages 1-24, October.
    4. Beck, Matthew J. & Hensher, David A., 2020. "Insights into the impact of COVID-19 on household travel and activities in Australia – The early days of easing restrictions," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 99(C), pages 95-119.
    5. Igor Betkier, 2020. "Safety of Urban Transport Users During the Covid-19 Pandemic," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(Special 3), pages 99-115.
    6. Luca Barbarossa, 2020. "The Post Pandemic City: Challenges and Opportunities for a Non-Motorized Urban Environment. An Overview of Italian Cases," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(17), pages 1-19, September.
    7. Fang, Hanming & Wang, Long & Yang, Yang, 2020. "Human mobility restrictions and the spread of the Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in China," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 191(C).
    8. Kevin Linka & Mathias Peirlinck & Francisco Sahli Costabal & Ellen Kuhl, 2020. "Outbreak dynamics of COVID-19 in Europe and the effect of travel restrictions," Computer Methods in Biomechanics and Biomedical Engineering, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(11), pages 710-717, August.
    9. Grzegorz Sierpiński & Marcin Staniek & Marcin Jacek Kłos, 2020. "Decision Making Support for Local Authorities Choosing the Method for Siting of In-City EV Charging Stations," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(18), pages 1-28, September.
    10. Michał Wielechowski & Katarzyna Czech & Łukasz Grzęda, 2020. "Decline in Mobility: Public Transport in Poland in the time of the COVID-19 Pandemic," Economies, MDPI, vol. 8(4), pages 1-24, September.
    11. Le Vine, Scott & Polak, John, 2019. "The impact of free-floating carsharing on car ownership: Early-stage findings from London," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 119-127.
    12. Guangyue Nian & Bozhezi Peng & Daniel (Jian) Sun & Wenjun Ma & Bo Peng & Tianyuan Huang, 2020. "Impact of COVID-19 on Urban Mobility during Post-Epidemic Period in Megacities: From the Perspectives of Taxi Travel and Social Vitality," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(19), pages 1-29, September.
    13. Michał Suchanek & Agnieszka Szmelter-Jarosz, 2019. "Environmental Aspects of Generation Y’s Sustainable Mobility," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-13, June.
    14. Matz Dahlberg & Per-Anders Edin & Erik Gronqvist & Johan Lyhagen & John Osth & Alexey Siretskiy & Marina Toger, 2020. "Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Population Mobility under Mild Policies: Causal Evidence from Sweden," Papers 2004.09087, arXiv.org.
    15. Khaled J. Assi & Md Shafiullah & Kh Md Nahiduzzaman & Umer Mansoor, 2019. "Travel-To-School Mode Choice Modelling Employing Artificial Intelligence Techniques: A Comparative Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(16), pages 1-12, August.
    16. Spickermann, Alexander & Grienitz, Volker & von der Gracht, Heiko A., 2014. "Heading towards a multimodal city of the future?," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 89(C), pages 201-221.
    17. Andrzej Łebkowski, 2019. "Studies of Energy Consumption by a City Bus Powered by a Hybrid Energy Storage System in Variable Road Conditions," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-39, March.
    18. Mozos-Blanco, Miguel Ángel & Pozo-Menéndez, Elisa & Arce-Ruiz, Rosa & Baucells-Aletà, Neus, 2018. "The way to sustainable mobility. A comparative analysis of sustainable mobility plans in Spain," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 45-54.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sarbast Moslem & Tiziana Campisi & Agnieszka Szmelter-Jarosz & Szabolcs Duleba & Kh Md Nahiduzzaman & Giovanni Tesoriere, 2020. "Best–Worst Method for Modelling Mobility Choice after COVID-19: Evidence from Italy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(17), pages 1-19, August.
    2. Anna E. Wolnowska & Lech Kasyk, 2021. "Ways Residents of Large Cities in Poland, Commute before and during the Covid-19 Pandemic," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(3B), pages 749-768.
    3. Guadalupe González-Sánchez & María Isabel Olmo-Sánchez & Elvira Maeso-González, 2021. "Challenges and Strategies for Post-COVID-19 Gender Equity and Sustainable Mobility," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(5), pages 1-19, February.
    4. Marta Borowska-Stefańska & Maxim A. Dulebenets & Michał Kowalski & Filip Turoboś & Szymon Wiśniewski, 2023. "Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Daily Mobility of the Elderly Living in Small Cities in Lodz Province," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(9), pages 1-23, May.
    5. Wang, Wei & Miao, Wei & Liu, Yongdong & Deng, Yiting & Cao, Yunfei, 2022. "The impact of COVID-19 on the ride-sharing industry and its recovery: Causal evidence from China," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 155(C), pages 128-141.
    6. Aldo Carranza & Marcel Goic & Eduardo Lara & Marcelo Olivares & Gabriel Y. Weintraub & Julio Covarrubia & Cristian Escobedo & Natalia Jara & Leonardo J. Basso, 2022. "The Social Divide of Social Distancing: Shelter-in-Place Behavior in Santiago During the Covid-19 Pandemic," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 68(3), pages 2016-2027, March.
    7. Marco Dueñas & Mercedes Campi & Luis E. Olmos, 2021. "Changes in mobility and socioeconomic conditions during the COVID-19 outbreak," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 8(1), pages 1-10, December.
    8. Abel Brodeur & David Gray & Anik Islam & Suraiya Bhuiyan, 2021. "A literature review of the economics of COVID‐19," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 35(4), pages 1007-1044, September.
    9. Roman Dostál & Josef Kocourek & Aneta Matysková & Karolína Moudrá & Vojtěch Nižňanský, 2021. "The Implementation of the Smart City Process—Researchers’ Knowledge in Detecting Transport System Defects," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-16, March.
    10. Borsati, Mattia & Nocera, Silvio & Percoco, Marco, 2022. "Questioning the spatial association between the initial spread of COVID-19 and transit usage in Italy," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    11. Wu, Jianxin & Zhan, Xiaoling & Xu, Hui & Ma, Chunbo, 2023. "The economic impacts of COVID-19 and city lockdown: Early evidence from China," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 151-165.
    12. Nicolò Gatti & Beatrice Retali, 2021. "Fighting the spread of Covid-19 : was the Swiss lockdown worth it?," IdEP Economic Papers 2101, USI Università della Svizzera italiana.
    13. Tiziana Campisi & Socrates Basbas & Anastasios Skoufas & Nurten Akgün & Dario Ticali & Giovanni Tesoriere, 2020. "The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on the Resilience of Sustainable Mobility in Sicily," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(21), pages 1-24, October.
    14. Beyer, Robert C.M. & Jain, Tarun & Sinha, Sonalika, 2023. "Lights out? COVID-19 containment policies and economic activity," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 85(C).
    15. Nicola Borri & Francesco Drago & Chiara Santantonio & Francesco Sobbrio, 2021. "The “Great Lockdown”: Inactive workers and mortality by Covid‐19," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(10), pages 2367-2382, September.
    16. Yang, Chao & Wan, Zhiyang & Yuan, Quan & Zhou, Yang & Sun, Maopeng, 2023. "Travel before, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic: Exploring factors in essential travel using empirical data," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 110(C).
    17. Velias, Alina & Georganas, Sotiris & Vandoros, Sotiris, 2022. "COVID-19: Early evening curfews and mobility," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 292(C).
    18. Beck, Matthew J. & Hensher, David A. & Nelson, John D., 2021. "Public transport trends in Australia during the COVID-19 pandemic: An investigation of the influence of bio-security concerns on trip behaviour," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 96(C).
    19. Anwar, Muhammad Azfar & Dhir, Amandeep & Jabeen, Fauzia & Zhang, Qingyu & Siddiquei, Ahmad Nabeel, 2023. "Unconventional green transport innovations in the post-COVID-19 era. A trade-off between green actions and personal health protection," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 155(PA).
    20. Medina-Molina, Cayetano & Pérez-Macías, Noemí & Fernández-Fernádez, José Luis, 2023. "The use of micromobility in different contexts. An explanation through the multilevel perspective and QCA," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 188(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:1:p:364-:d:474104. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.