The 120-Day COVID-19 Epidemic in the Metropolitan Area of Turin, Italy

Abstract

Background: This research aimed at study the impact of covid-19 epidemic on several aspects of the metropolitan area of Turin, a large city located in the north-west of Italy. A multidimensional perspective that considered economic, social, cultural and environmental data about the area was adopted.Methods: 121 items of open daily data from 1 January to 30 April 2020 were collected related to several variables including number of positive cases, stock values of companies located in Turin, particulate matter and traffic vehicles, traffic on local online websites, energy consumption, research trends for the keyword “coronavirus”, grant requests submitted to a philanthropic foundation. We developed a path analysis model in which the growing number of positive cases acted as an independent variable influencing the other variables.Findings: the rise of covid-19 epidemic and the subsequent lockdown was significant associated with all the variables considered excluding the grants requested to a philanthropic foundation. While the epidemic was growing, there were a significant change in the trend of stock values of two important companies of the area. Citizens increased their use of internet and there was a growing interest in the pandemic identified by Google research. Electricity consumption, traffic and particulate matter decreased.Interpretation: data confirm our expectation, covid-19 epidemic and subsequent lockdown radically changed the daily life and functioning of a large metropolitan area, influencing all the aspects we considered, from the economic status of two important companies to the traffic and electricity consumption. Funding: We did not receive any funding for the research.Declaration of Interests: None to declare.