Impact of non-pharmaceutical COVID-19 interventions on cyclist and pedestrian injuries in five cities of the province of Quebec

Abstract

The relationship between non-pharmaceutical COVID-19 (NP-COVID-19) interventions, which aimed to regulate public behavior to curb the spread of the virus, and road safety has become a crucial area of research to explore the unintended consequences of the pandemic. This study examines the five cities of Quebec, Canada, to assess the impact of NP-COVID-19 interventions on injuries and killed and severe traffic injuries involving cyclists and pedestrians. Interrupted time-series analyses were conducted from 2015 to 2022 using daily traffic fatality and injury data per 100,000 population. A COVID-19 NP interventions index for Quebec (QCnPI-Index) was developed, incorporating 58 interventions implemented from March 2020 to March 2022 across the cities. Multiple controls commonly used in road safety research, such as weather conditions and seasonal patterns, were applied. We divided the pandemic period into four distinct semesters to facilitate our understanding of changes within the pandemic. Our findings reveal a complex interaction between NPIs and road safety, with reductions in pedestrian injuries and KSI during periods of stringent NPIs, particularly in Montreal and Quebec City. Conversely, for cyclists, the impact varied, showing both increases and decreases in injuries and KSI across different cities and semesters. These results underscore the need for tailored road safety strategies that consider the unique patterns of pedestrian and cyclist mobility during pandemic-related disruptions.