Gender gap in travel time and trip Purpose: Pre-, during and post Covid19 evidence

Abstract

We investigate the gender gap in the travel time pre-, during and post-COVID19 pandemic in Gauteng, South Africa over the period 2015–2023. We use four rounds of the Gauteng City-Region Observatory Quality of Life (GCRO QoL) surveys. Results indicate that while women spend less time travelling compared to men across the study period, the gap has increased since the pandemic. Additionally, other socio-economic and demographic factors such as race, age, household size, dwelling type and car ownership also significantly affected travel times.

Further, using Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition, the study found that household maintenance trips like shopping and chauffeuring contributed positively to the gender travel time gap consistently over the period. The increasing gender gap observed in travel time since COVID19, is explained by fewer women (compared to men) being employed during and since the pandemic, rather than more employed women travelling shorter time or telecommuting compared to employed men. This is expected as more women lost their employment during the pandemic, and men have regained employment more effectively than women during the post-pandemic recovery. The study also found fewer women investing in travel for job search compared to men in the post-pandemic period, further exacerbating the gender gap in travel time.