Shift Magazine - December 2020 - 4

Has COVID-19 changed the course
for the future of mobility?
Randall J. Miller

EY Global Advanced Manufacturing & Mobility Leader

In just nine months since the global pandemic was declared, established patterns of mobility have been
upended around the globe. People have grown dramatically more selective about when they leave their
homes and for what purpose, and when they do, they are opting for private vehicles and micromobility
solutions rather than public transit and sharing-economy options.
These trends raise substantial questions about whether mobility is being rewired over the long term and,
if so, how the sector should respond, and how our cities and transport networks should potentially be
rethought as a result. To better understand these consumer trends, EY conducted consumer research,
the results of which are called the EY Mobility Consumer Index. The research program was global
and covered nine countries from the Americas, Western Europe and Asia. Our approach was to probe
consumer journey patterns across work, leisure and entertainment, and household and social segments.

In the ﬁrst EY Mobility Consumer
Index - full article available here
ey.com/mobilityconsumerindex2020
- consumers told us that:
* Journey numbers for work travel have declined the
most overall: down 61% as millions of people now
work from home to try to halt the spread of COVID-19.
Leisure and entertainment journeys have fallen 51%.
* Household and social travel showed the smallest
decline (40%), mostly in trips to meet friends and

family (down 50%). Journeys for unavoidable necessities,
such as shopping for household essentials, dipped 21%.
* On average, each person now spends 3.7 hours in transit
each week, down from 6 hours. Yet journeys of under
30 minutes make up a greater percentage of travel
within two of the three segments: up 79% in leisure and
entertainment, and 57% in household and social.
* Across the board, rides by taxi and public transport
saw the biggest drops by segment, as consumers were
less willing to share space with strangers. But personal
vehicles and micromobility options (including bikes,
e-bikes and scooters) were least impacted.
http://www.ey.com/mobilityconsumerindex2020
Shift Magazine - December 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Shift Magazine - December 2020
