Examining the Effects of COVID-19 on the Usage of Public Transportation (Case Study: Tehran)

As a result of the global spread of the COVID-19 virus and its epidemic, various measures were implemented to reduce the number of fatalities and costs incurred in multiple countries. Reducing daily travel and avoiding crowded and closed environments were two more serious suggestions to limit the spread. Both suggestions lowered public transit use. By shifting some business trips from public transit and encouraging residents to use other modes of transportation, returning passengers to public transportation may be tedious and lengthy. In the long term, this backwardness can reduce investment in public transportation systems and their share in urban mobility. Despite the decrease in coronavirus infection, a significant portion of the past demand for public transportation has not returned to this system, as seen by an examination of ticket card transaction data. This study explores the shift in people's work travel habits following the dissemination of COVID-19 by sending an online questionnaire to individuals from various occupations and ages. Examining the results of a sample size of 1050 reveals that, concurrent with the development of Corona, the proportion of business trips made by public transit has been reduced to less than half. This decline is about the same among men and women and between educational categories, but it varies by age group.