Changes in Mobility during COVID-19 as a Response to Government Imposed Restrictions: A Multiple Regression Analysis for the Top Five Populous U.S States

Flor Eitan,Kibria Bm Golam,George Florence

doi:10.23937/2469-5831/1510032

Abstract

With the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic, several changes occurred in the lifestyle and habits of human life. These include various voluntary and mandatory governmental restrictions, limiting social interaction by encompassing social distancing, travel limitations, social gatherings, personal mobility, as well as closures and reduced capacities in sectors such as retail, restaurants, and the entertainment industry.

Highlights

The COVID-19 disease (Coronavirus 2019) is caused by and attributable to the virus known as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)
This study seeks to identify whether regulatory restrictions posed an overall significant impact on mobility in the United States by conducting multiple linear regression analysis studies on predicting average statewide mobility based on the factors of daily cases, daily deaths, and imposed governmental restrictions
Upon constructing and identifying the ideal model out of the initial and final models for each of the individual states of California, Florida, New York, Pennsylvania, and Texas, it is clear that the overall trend for mobility is decreasing as government restrictions came to implementation; hindering on social gatherings, personal mobility, restaurant capacity/usage, as well as in the general business domain whether it be entertainment or the retail industry

Summary

Introduction

The COVID-19 disease (Coronavirus 2019) is caused by and attributable to the virus known as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first instance of the disease introduced itself in late December 2019 in the Hubei province of China and ever since has drastically proliferated to reach a pandemic status accruing over 10 million cases and 500,000 deaths globally as of present-day. The United States alone accounts for over 2.5 million of those cases and over 125,000 deaths [1]. Juxtaposed with a second wave or outbreak on the near horizon, the motive of this study was to use publicly available and anonymous cell phone GPS data as a direct measure of human mobility for the period of March 10, 2020, to May 28, 2020, to form a basis on evaluating the governmental restrictions that took place in the United States in mid to late March 2020. The scope of this study was narrowed down to the five most populous states (California, Florida, New York, Pennsylvania, and Texas) as we believe these states would comprise the majority influence in decision making and changes in future regulations for imposed restrictions for individual states as well on the national scale

Objectives

Findings

Conclusion