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Effect of COVID-19 response policies on walking behavior in US cities

Author

Listed:
  • Ruth F. Hunter

    (Queen’s University Belfast)

  • Leandro Garcia

    (Queen’s University Belfast)

  • Thiago Herick Sa

    (Center for Epidemiological Research in Nutrition and Health, Universtiy of São Paulo)

  • Belen Zapata-Diomedi

    (RMIT University)

  • Christopher Millett

    (Imperial College London)

  • James Woodcock

    (University of Cambridge)

  • Alex ’Sandy’ Pentland

    (Institute for Data Science and Society, MIT)

  • Esteban Moro

    (Institute for Data Science and Society, MIT
    Universidad Carlos III de Madrid)

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic is causing mass disruption to our daily lives. We integrate mobility data from mobile devices and area-level data to study the walking patterns of 1.62 million anonymous users in 10 metropolitan areas in the United States. The data covers the period from mid-February 2020 (pre-lockdown) to late June 2020 (easing of lockdown restrictions). We detect when users were walking, distance walked and time of the walk, and classify each walk as recreational or utilitarian. Our results reveal dramatic declines in walking, particularly utilitarian walking, while recreational walking has recovered and even surpassed pre-pandemic levels. Our findings also demonstrate important social patterns, widening existing inequalities in walking behavior. COVID-19 response measures have a larger impact on walking behavior for those from low-income areas and high use of public transportation. Provision of equal opportunities to support walking is key to opening up our society and economy.

Suggested Citation

  • Ruth F. Hunter & Leandro Garcia & Thiago Herick Sa & Belen Zapata-Diomedi & Christopher Millett & James Woodcock & Alex ’Sandy’ Pentland & Esteban Moro, 2021. "Effect of COVID-19 response policies on walking behavior in US cities," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-9, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:12:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-021-23937-9
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-23937-9
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    Cited by:

    1. Veronika Harantová & Alica Kalašová & Simona Skřivánek Kubíková & Jaroslav Mazanec & Radomíra Jordová, 2022. "The Impact of Mobility on Shopping Preferences during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Evidence from the Slovak Republic," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-27, April.
    2. Mohammad Javad Kamelifar & Behzad Ranjbarnia & Houshmand Masoumi, 2022. "The Determinants of Walking Behavior before and during COVID-19 in Middle-East and North Africa: Evidence from Tabriz, Iran," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-20, March.
    3. Ruben Talavera-Garcia & Rocío Pérez-Campaña, 2021. "Applying a Pedestrian Level of Service in the Context of Social Distancing: The Case of the City of Madrid," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(21), pages 1-21, October.
    4. Takahiro Yabe & Bernardo García Bulle Bueno & Xiaowen Dong & Alex Pentland & Esteban Moro, 2023. "Behavioral changes during the COVID-19 pandemic decreased income diversity of urban encounters," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-10, December.
    5. Navarrete-Hernandez, Pablo & Rennert, Lindiwe & Balducci, Alessandro, 2023. "An evaluation of the impact of COVID-19 safety measures in public transit spaces on riders' Worry of virus contraction," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 1-12.
    6. Xiao, Tianyi & Mu, Tong & Shen, Sunle & Song, Yiming & Yang, Shufan & He, Jie, 2022. "A dynamic physical-distancing model to evaluate spatial measures for prevention of Covid-19 spread," Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, Elsevier, vol. 592(C).
    7. Becky PY Loo & Zhuangyuan Fan, 2023. "Social interaction in public space: Spatial edges, moveable furniture, and visual landmarks," Environment and Planning B, , vol. 50(9), pages 2510-2526, November.
    8. Michael Batty & Judith Clifton & Peter Tyler & Li Wan, 2022. "The post-Covid city [Mobility, environment, and inequalities in the post-Covid city]," Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 15(3), pages 447-457.

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