Investigation of shifts in time use behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic: A MMDCEV approach with panel GPS data

Abstract

Typical patterns of time use and travel behavior have been transformed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The drastic change has been documented in several studies to date, especially in the realm of transport, that have asked respondents about how their behavior has changed compared to their pre-pandemic routines. This work complements those efforts, offering a valuable evaluation of the decision-making process behind choosing which activities to engage in and for how long. A mixed multiple discrete continuous extreme value (MMDCEV) model was applied to panel GPS data collected between September 2019 and October 2020. The estimation results uncover how different demographic and mobility tool ownership characteristics affect the choice of activities and their duration. Additional interaction effects of different time periods exogenously introduced into the model allowed for the assessment of differential effects of these components. Our findings reveal that the choice to participate in out-of-home activities strongly differs with respect to prepandemic conditions. Not only were individuals choosing to spend more time at home during the pandemic, but when they did engage in out-of-home activities, it was also for a shorter duration. Notably, age, gender, education level, and income all affect the propensity of engaging in out-of-home activities during the pandemic periods. The results and their implications for policy as we try to plan for the "new normal" daily life are discussed.