key: cord-0690757-oqxma4tj
authors: Yoshida, Nagahiro; Ye, Weilin
title: Commuting travel behavior focusing on the role of shared transportation in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Tokyo Olympics
date: 2021-11-27
journal: IATSS Research
DOI: 10.1016/j.iatssr.2021.11.010
sha: dfdcfff21d54a4ec7f836137ac19686a6b7263ea
doc_id: 690757
cord_uid: oqxma4tj

To maintain life in the face of the COVID-19, people's lifestyles and travel behaviors must change. Accordingly, such changes have also occurred in the travel behavior for commuting purposes, especially during periods of severe congestion. The most typical example is the decrease in commuting travel due to telecommunication and other factors. Additionally, with the development of the sharing economy in recent years, the introduction of shared transportation has been rapidly expanding in the transportation sector, which may contribute to alleviating traffic congestion and other problems in the COVID-19 situation. In this study, we focused on the changes in travel behavior for commuting purposes during the COVID-19 period, including the time of the Tokyo Olympics, when traffic congestion was expected. The survey was conducted using a web-based questionnaire. In addition, to further promote changes in the travel behavior during the COVID-19 period, we analyzed the possibility of changes in the use of shared transportation arising from nudge effects of information provision and incentives. The results showed that the changes in commuting travel behavior were related to the awareness of COVID-19. Certain issues, such as a lack of ports and the widespread use of shared transportation need to be identified and resolved. Meanwhile, it was shown that the role of shared transportation for commuting purposes could be further improved by incentives and real-time information presentation about shared transportation.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, four states of emergency were declared between April 2020 and July 2021, three Cs "closed spaces, crowded places, and close-contact settings" infection control measures were announced, and new work styles (telework, telecommuting, and staggered work hours) were implemented. In addition, the Tokyo Olympics held in August 2021 and the traffic congestion caused by the implementation of transportation demand management measures had a significant impact on people's daily travel behavior especially for commuting purposes. Thus, under the situation where three C's avoidance behavior is required, shared transportation is rapidly introduced as one of the new transportation modes, and its use has been increasing in recent years. It has been reported that the use of shared transportation has been increasing overall, although it decreased once when the state of emergency was declared. Thus, although the use of shared transportation is increasing, its role in transportation planning remains unclear. To clarify the role of shared transportation as well as the factors that influence its use, it is necessary to understand the actual situation of changes in travel behavior for commuting purposes, cognition, and behavior regarding COVID-19, and the actual situation of shared transportation use.

Regarding research related to travel behavior, on top of the mobility management strategies, the use of nudges is advancing not only in the research area of human behavior change, but also in the consideration of concrete proposals in public policy. Nudge is a theory postulated by Richard H. Thaler, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2017, and it is defined as "a policy approach that helps people to voluntarily make better choices for themselves" using behavioral science findings (behavioral insights) [1] . Examples of the use of nudges in public policy areas during the COVID-19 expansion period include the promotion of moderate physical activity, hand sanitization, and washing hands with soap [2] . In the field of travel behavior, there is a need for policies that help people to voluntarily make better choices while avoiding infection and congestion, and it is necessary to focus on the role of shared transportation as a new transportation option and to examine the possibility of promoting its use. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to focus on the changes in travel behavior for commuting purposes during the COVID-19 period and the Tokyo Olympics, when traffic congestion on roads or overcrowding in public transportation systems was expected. We conducted a survey using a web-based questionnaire. In addition, to further promote the change in travel behavior during the COVID-19 period, we will analyze the possibility of changes in the use of shared transportation using the nudge effect of information provision and incentives. Shared transportation in this study is defined as a transportation J o u r n a l P r e -p r o o f Journal Pre-proof service in which users share transportation by renting and borrowing transportation means among multiple ports. In order to introduce shared transportation and respond to the commuting travel behavior of users, it is necessary to include different transportation characteristics such as travel distance or cost as options. Therefore, in this study, car-sharing, bike-sharing, and kickboard-sharing were considered as shared transportation options. Therefore, the shared transportation considered in this study includes car share, bike share, and kickboard share, taking into account their current prevalence.

In the context of the impact of COVID-19 on transportation, MLIT [3] conducted a study on the impact of COVID-19 on the transportation industry. There were businesses that responded that the number of people transported decreased by 50% or more for railroads.

In the report on the Actual Condition of Public Transport Management [4] , more than 60% of companies had a 30-50% decrease in sales for buses and railways. A behavioral and attitudinal study on COVID-19 [5] showed that people tend to overestimate the risk of infection, and that the subjective infection rate of public transportation use was 3,000 times higher than the objective infection rate. According to Parr et al. [6] , Florida saw a 47.5% decrease in statewide traffic volume when compared to a similar day in 2019. ITDP [7] studied bicycle use during the COVID-19 pandemic and found that in many areas, both cycling and walking increased significantly, with bicycle use rising to 1,000% in some areas of Jakarta. Parker et al. [8] conducted a study on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on travel patterns and transportation users and found that the frequency of use and distance traveled by high-income individuals were affected. Muhammad et al. [9] found a significant shift from public transportation to private cars and other modes of transportation for trips before and during the outbreak of the pandemic. Ergül et al. [10] studied the attitudes and behaviors of public transportation users during the COVID-19 pandemic and found that intention to use was influenced by trust in public transportation and the enclosed environment. Vyas et al. [11] showed that during the pandemic, the frequency of use of bike share decreased, but the average time of use increased. Li et al. [12] studied public bike share in London during the COVID-19 pandemic and found that use during the and health status, and that walking, and bicycling are maintainable for health and well-being satisfaction.

As for shared transportation, Kasahara et al. [15] studied the cost of transportation by introducing a bike share system. Tsuboi et al. [16] studied the effects of introducing e-bikes at Nagoya University. Miura [17] studied the possibility of introducing a dockless bike share in Japan. Many studies have been conducted on shared transportation users. Guo [18] analyzed users' usage and satisfaction. Hashimoto et al. [19] compared the evaluation of shared bicycles between users and non-users. Yasue [20] analyzed the intention to use car sharing among members and non-members. Maeda [21] examined the route of bicycle relocation in shared transportation management. Yamamoto et al. [22] compared the placement of car-sharing ports in different cities. D. Freundet al. [23] studied tracks for bike share relocation in new models and optimization problems. Ravivet et al. [24] and Parikh et al. [25] investigated suitable inventory management for ports. Sugihara [26] and others conducted a study on appropriate port forms, focusing on Tokyo. The common conclusion from these works regarding shared transportation issues [27] [28] , was that there is lack of penetration, and issues regarding improvement of convenience, density of ports, and profitability were mentioned.

Nudge is a technique that uses the psychological tendencies that influence human choices to encourage spontaneous and desirable behaviors. There are many related studies on this subject. Hara et al. [29] examined the transformation of the target population into decarbonizing behavior by providing information through environmental communication and found an improvement in the effectiveness of dissemination and awareness-raising. Yamazaki [30] conducted an empirical analysis of the nudge effect on the ethical use of social networking services (SNSs) in three countries: Japan, the United States, and China. Seto [31] discussed the application of nudge theory to transportation policy, pointing out the reduction of traffic congestion, traffic safety, consideration for the environment, and collaborative road management. Arriagada et al. [32] studied how to use bus stops as nudges to improve coverage and encourage users to share information. Franssens et al. [33] conducted a field experiment in Rotterdam to encourage commuters to increase their use of public transportation. As examples of the use of nudges for public transportation, local governments [34] have implemented measures to promote the use of public transportation, such as "Easy" events, "Attractive" character announcements of operation status, "Social" presentation of correct information on COVID-19 virus infection, and "Timely" provision of information on calorie consumption when using public transportation. The number of infected people in Tokyo peaked around January 2021, but the situation was controlled by the declaration of the second emergency and the implementation of measures to prevent the spread of the disease, but it spread again in May. By July, the number of infected people increased daily. In terms of the number of infected people by age in Tokyo, those in their twenties were the majority, followed by those in their thirties and then forties. However, the number of deaths by age group was highest among people in their 60s and above.

Based on usage during the period of the spread of COVID-19 infection, the most congested period at the major terminal stations of the railroads in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area was from 7:30 to 9:00 in the morning. However, it was reported that the usage of the stations during the morning peak period decreased by 28% compared to the period before the spread of the infection. In terms of the usage of major subway stations, the most congested period is from 7:30 to 9:00 in the morning, and from 17:00 to 19:30 in the evening.

In terms of commuter trips in Tokyo in 2018 [37] [38] , rail was the leading mode of transportation for commuting purposes across Tokyo, followed by cars and bicycles. Among

Regarding the status of shared transportation in Tokyo, there are several companies providing bike-sharing services, all of which are private companies [39] and receive parking space support from different departments of local government. Of these, only one company operates in the city center, and mutual use is possible in 11 wards. As of the end of March 2021, approximately 870 site ports and 9,200 bicycles have been installed.

It was announced that the use of bike-sharing use was sluggish when the state of emergency was declared and increased after the restriction was lifted [40] . As for car share [41] According to an attitudinal survey conducted by a car-sharing company, one in five new members announced that the reason for joining was COVID-19. Kickboard Sharing system [43] is a new type of shared transportation, which will be introduced in Tokyo and Osaka in April 2021, in which 200 ports are ready for kickboard use.

Transportation measures [44] [45] [46] , depending on the time of year, are listed in Table 1 . During COVID-19, to combat infection and reduce congestion, public transportation adjusted its weekday schedule through telework and staggered work hours, road transportation promoted the use of bicycles, and shared transportation suspended some ports. To reduce congestion during the Olympic Games, public transportation will be operated safely and smoothly as in COVID-19, and road transportation were asked to reduce and disperse travel demand during the Games period through Traffic Demand Management (TDM) including measures providing dedicated lanes or priority lanes for the Games and tolling measures (toll surcharges, half-price discounts at night, etc.). and Nakano wards), where the introduction of shared transportation was concentrated, and the target population was workers in their 20s to 60s. The subjects were divided into groups according to whether they had changed their travel behavior for commuting purposes before or during the spread of the new COVID-19 infection (from around April 2020 to the time the questionnaire was administered), and the groups were designed so that the results could be compared among themselves.

As shown in Table 2 , each group was set up with 250 samples for a total of 1000 samples.

As for the content of the questions in this survey, for the changes in commuting transportation, we asked about transportation mode, cost, and time as shown in Table 3 ;

for the risks and perceptions of COVID-19 (Table 4) , we asked about risk avoidance measures and attitudes, and for shared transportation (Table 5) , we asked about awareness, usage, and evaluation. The plan with nudges consisted of four questions on the intention to use and recommendation.

J o u r n a l P r e -p r o o f 

J o u r n a l P r e -p r o o f

In this study, we examined the effects of public, environmental, and financial incentives of shared transportation on the intention to use and recommend shared transportation, and to examine which nudge plans may contribute to changing travel behavior for commuting purposes. To compare the nudge plans, we prepared questions about the four plans (Table 6) , and the answers were combined in required and random items due to the limitation of the number of questions. Among them, plan (4) was set only for financial incentives and was a required item. Plans (1), (2), and (3) were combined plans for financial incentives, public benefits, and environmental awareness, and subjects were randomly asked about them. When using shared transportation, the amount of CO2 reduction is calculated based on the actual distance traveled using an app on a smartphone, etc., and bonuses (points) are given according to the amount of reduction; points can be used when using shared transportation. Plan (3) Plan (1)＋Plan (2) Plan (4) Financial incentive:

When using shared transportation, the actual distance used is calculated and points are awarded according to the value. Points can be used when using shared transportation or public transportation (e.g., distance used for shared bicycles / points: 500m / 1 point).

J o u r n a l P r e -p r o o f Table 7 shows a diagram about the attributes in the sample of 1000. The basic attributes of this study are as follows: gender, age, residence, occupation, area of work, ownership of available means of transportation and license, commuting allowance, annual income, industry, and household composition. This is thought to be due to the implementation of telecommunication for a new lifestyle, which has greatly reduced the frequency of going out. A comparison of the changes in travel behavior by reason for change between "Olympic only" and "COVID-19 only" shows that while the percentage of "Frequency of going out" decreased for "Olympic only" the percentage of "change in location of home or workplace" was high at almost 50%, which is thought to be due to the implementation of telework at locations other than home. The percentage increase and decrease before and after the change in means of transportation by reason are shown in Figure 2 . The means of transportation that increased during the "Olympic only" change were buses, cars (with passengers), and bicycles, in that order, and it is thought that the means of transportation changed due to the traffic restrictions on the roads during the Olympic Games. On the other hand, the means of transportation that increased during the "COVID-19 only" change were bicycles, bike share, and cabs. In the case of "COVID-19 only," the increased means of transportation were bicycles, bike share, and taxis, while the decreased means of transportation whose use decreased were public transportation such as "rail/train" and "bus."

J o u r n a l P r e -p r o o f Table 9 shows the results of the regression analysis on the main factors affecting commuting time. Case 1 shows the results of the analysis on the impact of the reason for the change and the details of the change on the commuting time. As for Changed reason the commuting time for "Olympic only" became shorter, and " Olympic+COVID-19" became longer.

As for the place of residence, it can be seen that commuting time becomes longer for those who live farther away. In terms of changes, changes in the means of transportation have the greatest impact on commuting time. As for the contents of changed behavior, all have an impact on commuting time, with transportation means having the greatest impact. Case 2 shows the impact on commuting time for those whose means of transportation has changed.

As for the means of transportation, commuting time is longer for "Car (Driver) " and "

Motorcycle ", and for Shared transportation, " Bike Share" has no effect on commute times, while" Car Share" affects commuting times. And "Kickboard Share" will make the commute less time consuming. J o u r n a l P r e -p r o o f Table 10 shows the results of multiple regression analysis on factors affecting transportation costs. Case 1 shows the results of the analysis on the impact of the reason for the change and the details of the change on the change on the transportation cost.

As for the reason for the change, the transportation cost was relatively higher for those who chose " Olympic only". As for the place of residence, the transportation cost was higher for those who lived farther away. Regarding the Contents of changed behavior, the transportation cost was relatively higher for all the behavior. Case 2 shows the results of the impact on transportation costs due to changes in the means of transportation of those who changed. As can be seen, transportation cost increases for those who chose "Bus ", " Car (Driver)", " Motorcycle ", and " Bicycle". In Shared transportation, those who chose "Car Share" spent the most on transportation, and " Bike Share" has no effect on transportation costs. J o u r n a l P r e -p r o o f

This section discusses the impact of risk avoidance measures and attitudes on travel behavior for commuting purposes on the risk perception of COVID-19. The questionnaire results were scored according to the content of risk avoidance measures and compared according to whether the travel behavior was changed. There were differences in the perceptions of risk for several questions. Among them, there was a significant difference of 1% for Q6-2, "Keep distance from people when you are out" and Q7-4, "I would not mind if I were infected." There was a 1% significant difference between "No change" and Q7-4

"I do not mind if I get infected." Since travel behavior during commuting is generally difficult to change, it is likely that for the "with change" respondents, they believe that they could have avoided the risk by making changes in COVID-19.

As a result of the comparison of risk perception by reason for change, from the overall perspective, "COVID-19 only" had a higher risk awareness than "Olympic only" and there was a significant difference. Regarding avoidance of risk, the "Olympic Only" group placed more emphasis on their own risk awareness, while the "COVID-19 Only" group placed more emphasis on others around them and the risk environment. There was a significant difference in attitude toward risk between the "Olympics only" and "COVID-19 only" groups, indicating that the "COVID-19 only" group was more attentive to risk. This may be because the Olympics brought about a stimulus (attention to the Olympics), including psychological aspects, which diverted some of the attention from COVID-19. As can be seen from the figure, the percentage of places avoided in the "with change" category was slightly higher than in the "no change" category. One of the more significant differences is that the "with change" places more emphasis on the environment in which in Japan, but it is thought that awareness of shared transportation is still insufficient.

Regarding the reasons for not using shared transportation for commuting purposes among those who have used it, about 35% of the respondents said that they do not have a port nearby, followed by 20.6% for both "I don't know how to use it" and "I would prefer another means of transportation," suggesting that there are issues related to the convenience of shared transportation. There are fewer traffic restrictions and congestion related to bike share, and they can be used more freely. On the other hand, car share was rated better than bike share in terms of economic efficiency (purchase cost, maintenance cost, and pricing plans). This could be because the cost of a car is higher than that of a bike.

J o u r n a l P r e -p r o o f Figure 5 shows the intention to use and recommendation of the shared transportation type according to whether they have experienced it. From the results of the questionnaire, for example, in terms of intention to use, we scored using four options as follows: 3 points for "strongly want to use," 2 points for "want to use," 1 point for "don't want to use," and 0 points for "don't want to use at all," and then calculated the average score for comparison. There is a significant difference between the intention to use and the intention to recommend between experienced and inexperienced users. Experienced users have a certain amount of loyalty, which may be the reason for the difference in the intention to use. It is expected that the presentation of information on the use of shared transportation, the operation of public transportation vehicles, and road congestion will be effective in promoting the use of shared transportation, and that the presentation of financial incentives in the form of versatile points will also be effective in promoting the use of shared transportation. Meanwhile, we found that there was a significant difference between all four plans depending on whether the user had experience. This means that for inexperienced users, use should be encouraged after increasing the penetration rate. For example, information such as the fact that using shared transportation in COVID-19 can be avoided to "Three Cs" and that it can be avoided in traffic congestion situations during commuting can be given to inexperienced users.

J o u r n a l P r e -p r o o f Then the results of intention to use and recommendation among high risk perception group were compared. For the risk perception groups, as a simple method, the seven responses in the four levels of 0-3 points in Q6 and Q7 were scored and the 0-21 total was obtained. 0-7 points was the low risk perception group, 8-14 points was the medium risk perception group, and 15-21 points was the high risk perception group. The figure 6 shows that there is a significant difference between the intention to use and recommend shared transportation between those with high and low awareness of plan (1) (environmental awareness) and (3) In this study, through a questionnaire, commuters during the COVID-19 period and the Olympic period were surveyed to find out the changes in their travel behavior for commuting purposes and their perception of shared transportation. First, the results of the analysis of commuting travel behavior showed that changes in commuting travel behavior were mostly due to changes in home/work location and frequency of going out. Further, there were significant differences in the means of transportation with and without behavior change, and the use of public transportation tended to decrease. There was no significant difference between the commuting cost and commuting time and the change in commuting behavior, but the commuting cost tended to be higher, and the commuting time tended to be longer. Next, the results of the analysis of risk perception and commuter travel behavior showed that differences in perception of COVID-19 led to changes in commuter travel behavior, and those who did not change their behavior were more focused on risk. There was also a significant difference in risk perception depending on the reason for behavior change; those who changed their behavior for COVID-19 reasons were found to be more focused on the risk. People's behavior change was found to be linked to congestion, and those who changed and those who changed because of COVID-19 were found to be more aware of congested places. The results of the analysis of shared transportation for commuting purposes showed that the frequency of use was 3-4 days per week, and the use of shared bicycles was mostly within 30 min. It was found that there is a difference in the perception of shared transportation depending on the experience, and that the issues of widespread use and insufficient number of ports still exist. The role of shared transportation for commuting purposes can be considered from the perspectives of safety, economy, environment, and public benefit. Finally, with regard to the plan consideration using nudges, we found that the intention to use and recommendation differed between the plans of those who had experience with shared transportation and those who had no experience, and that the intention to use and recommendation differed between the plans of those with high and low risk perception. People respond to the offer of financial incentives and increasing the number of points offered appropriately could encourage the use of shared transportation.

In addition, since shared transportation is not widely used, believe that the role of shared transportation could be better publicized as an effective means of maintaining social distance and reducing the risk of infection, especially during Covid-19, when public transportation is less disrupted.

J o u r n a l P r e -p r o o f

This survey was conducted during the Olympic Games, and there were measures to ease road traffic and public transportation to prevent congestion. However, after the Olympics, the situation will return to normal, so there is a possibility that awareness will change.

In the future, it will be necessary to consider long-term effects on behavior change. In addition, the situation of COVID-19 is changing daily; for example, the vaccination status and mutation status of the virus are not mentioned in this questionnaire. In the future, it will be necessary to consider the impact of commuter traffic rules set by companies on the commuter traffic behavior of individuals and the long-term effects on behavior change. In this study, we did not analyze the attributes of the respondents, but it is necessary to analyze the gender, age, and ownership of private cars.

None.

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