Exploring the interconnection between telecommuting, trip reduction, and transportation equity amidst the coronavirus pandemic

Abstract

This study delves into the rebound effect between telecommuting and trip reduction during the pandemic, offering crucial insights for transportation policy and societal well-being amidst the rise of remote work. Drawing from data across major US cities, it assesses transportation equity among socioeconomic groups. This study corrects sampling biases with the synthetic minority oversampling technique and captures endogeneities among correlated dependent variables using multivariate mixed models. The findings underscore variations in telecommuting and trip reduction levels across cities and identify the absence of the rebound effect between telecommuting and trip reduction during the pandemic. Importantly, this study informs telecommuting practices in the endemic era, highlighting the need to prioritize equity considerations for marginalized groups such as the elderly, females, minorities, and low-income households.