Evaluation of the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on transportation: a case study of Iran

Abstract

Coronavirus first appeared in January 2020 and has spread dramatically in most parts of the world. In addition to exerting enormous impacts on public health and well-being, it has also affected a broad spectrum of industries and sectors, including transportation. Countries around the world have imposed restrictions on travel and participation in activities due to the outbreak of the virus. Many countries have adopted social distancing rules requiring people to maintain a safe distance. Therefore, the pandemic has accelerated the transition into a world in which online educa-tion, online shopping, and remote working are becoming increasingly prevalent. Every aspect of our life has witnessed a series of new rules, habits, and behaviours during this period, and our travel choices or behaviours are no exception. Some of these changes can be permanent or have long-lasting effects. To control this situation, these changes must first be recognised in various aspects of transportation in order to provide policies for similar situations in the future. In this regard, this study seeks to examine how transportation sectors have changed in the first waves of the pandemic. Iran has been selected as the case study in this paper. This research is divided into two parts. The first part focuses on the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic on rural transportation in Iran. This is followed by assessing the impacts of the virus on urban transportation in Tehran (the capital of Iran). The behaviour of more than 700 travellers in terms of trip purpose, travel time, and mode choice is evaluated using a questionnaire. Results indicate that the number of passen-gers has reduced dramatically in rural transportation systems. In such systems, considerations such as keeping social distancing, disinfection of passengers and their luggage, and unemployment of a group of personnel working in the transportation industry have been more evident. In urban transportation, education trips have dropped the most. This might relate to an increase in online teaching and health concerns. The same pattern can be seen in the passengers who used bicycles, public taxis, and other public transportation systems. Finally, during the pandemic, drivers’ speed has increased, which justifies the need for traffic calming for drivers.