How did the COVID-19 pandemic impact traveler behavior toward public transport? The case of Athens, Greece

Role of stay-at-home requests and travel restrictions in preventing the spread of COVID-19 in Japan

“…There is a two-way relationship between the spread of infectious diseases and travel behavior ( Abdullah et al, 2021 ): the perceived risk of infectious diseases and lockdown policies affect travel behavior, while appropriate travel restrictions can mitigate the spread of infectious diseases. Many studies have analyzed the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on travel behavior ( Beck and Hensher, 2020 , Bohman et al, 2021 , Kim and Kwan, 2021 , Kopsidas et al, 2021 , Wee and Witlox, 2021 ). People generally reduced outdoor travel because of lockdown policies and fear of getting infected ( Hu et al, 2021 ).…”

“…However, the reduction in human travel has become smaller over time despite the existence of travel restrictions, as knowledge of COVID-19 has increased and perceived risk has decreased ( Kim and Kwan, 2021 , Lyu and Takikawa, 2021 ). Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic has reduced the probability of taking public transport, and people are more likely to travel by active modes (e.g., walking and bicycling) and private vehicles ( Abdullah et al, 2021 , Kopsidas et al, 2021 ).…”

Integrating COVID-19 health risks into crowding costs for transit schedule planning

“…In fact, crowding was found to be the most important factor in mode choice during the pandemic ( Shin et al 2021 ). Research has revealed that passengers’ willingness to return to transit significantly depends on perceived safety and comfort of using transit during the pandemic ( Kopsidas et al, 2021 , Przybylowski et al, 2021 ). Tan and Ma (2020) found that people who perceived a higher risk of contracting the virus by taking transit had a lower probability of taking transit.…”

The behavioral immune system and use of transportation services during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…In a sample of individuals who regularly used public transportation from Gdańsk, Poland, 25% of respondents indicated that they would not return to using public transportation after the COVID-19 pandemic ( Przybylowski et al, 2021 ). Another study from Greece investigated the refrainment time participants would take before using public transport again after the lockdowns ended ( Kopsidas et al, 2021 ). Although 13% of the participants reported that they would use public transportation the next day, most reported waiting for some period of time (e.g., 31% reported they would wait one week to one month, 15% reported they would refrain from use of public transport for at least six months).…”