EMPLOYEE COMMUTING IN NEW NORMAL: AN ANALYSIS BASED ON HOUSEHOLD CHARACTERISTICS AND PERCEPTION ON HEALTH PROTOCOLS

Abstract

This article describes a new approach in understanding the behavior in selecting modes for commuting to work based on the correlation between household factors and perceptions of health protocols in public transportation during the new normal. Data from 430 respondents living in Jakarta were collected, including household characteristics (age, number of family members, income, vehicle ownership, type of work), perceptions of health protocol services in public transportation, and use of transportation modes. Cross-tabulation (crosstab) was used to describe the relationship between variables. Results showed that public transportation remains a preference among low-income commuters but not for high-income commuters. Those with private vehicles used both private and public transportation modes in balance. Respondents with high incomes (> 15 million) felt health protocol implementation in public transportation was not optimal; therefore, they often used private cars. The use of cars tends to increase along with respondents’ age. This finding showed that the use of commuting public transportation during the new normal did not depend on perceptions of health protocol. Instead, it is rather affected by household factors. However, perceptions of health services in public transportation significantly affected car usage. Therefore, a comprehensive strategy is needed by developing reliable, safe, comfortable, and healthy public transportation services to anticipate changes in household factors that may reduce the use of public transportation.