What drives the changes in public transport use in the context of the COVID‐19 pandemic? Highlights from Lyon metropolitan area

Abstract

This article focuses on the decline in the use of public transport in the context of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) crisis in the Lyon metropolitan area, France. Using data from a web‐based survey, supplemented by traffic counts and a qualitative survey, we explain this decline by the decrease in out‐of‐home activities such as work and the concomitant increase in teleworking, as well as by modal transfers. We test these explanations by multiple regression models that include socio‐demographic, residential, professional and attitudinal variables. We conclude with a discussion on the lasting of these changes and their implications for mobility policy.