The Renaissance of Transit and Ridesharing: From Pandemic Towards the New Normal

Abstract

The coronavirus pandemic significantly impacts transit and ridesharing usage. This study corrects sampling biases and compares differences in transit and ridesharing usage between during-COVID and post-COVID. The results show (1) transit and ridesharing usage reduction significantly varied across cities; (2) Black and elderly people did not reduce transit and ridesharing usage during-COVID; (3) Hispanics, Asians, females, educated, high-income, employees from public sectors, and people who were willing to receive vaccines reduced transit and ridesharing usage post-COVID in 2021; (4) individuals with more children or individuals with more expenditure difficulties did not reduce transit and ridesharing usage post-COVID in 2021. For policy implications, attention and additional help should be given to Black, the elderly, households with more children, and individuals with more expenditure difficulties. Education and promotion strategies should be placed on females, Hispanics, Asians, educated, high-income, and employees working in public sectors, to accelerate the renaissance of transit and ridesharing.

Keywords: Transit and ridesharing, sampling bias, social equity, recovery planning, COVID