The travel behaviors before and after lockdown: Case study on Shanghai, 2022

Abstract

From April 1 to May 31, 2022, Shanghai implemented a full lockdown in response to the rapid spread of COVID-19 to protect the vulnerable population. This paper aims to comprehensively assess the impact of this lockdown. Traffic data for March and June of 2022 were collected, including the vehicular traffic volumes from four typical intersections and metro ridership. Other important indicators, including COVID-19 cases, Baidu Index and Shanghai Stock Exchange Index, were also employed. The results show that: (1) In both March and June, except for the intersection near the major hospital, the ratios between the weekday and weekend traffic volumes were higher than those observed before the pandemic, which implies a significant drop in leisure trips during these periods. (2) The evolution of traffic volume in March was largely driven by some important COVID-19-related events, while the traffic volume in June showed a more spontaneous and stepwise recovery pattern. (3) The confirmed cases had a significant impact on the traffic volume in March, but the time lag of the confirmed cases was not found. The impact of confirmed cases on traffic volume in June was not significant. (4) The transfer from public transport to private ones could be observed during this period, but the recovery proportion of Shanghai metro ridership is higher than most other cities examined in this study, suggesting the importance of enhancing public confidence for public transport in the post-pandemic period. These findings can aid in refining potential pandemic measures for future scenarios.