Travel behaviour and greenhouse gas emissions during the COVID-19 pandemic: A case study in a university setting

The year 2020 was characterized by a marked shift in daily travel patterns due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While we know that overall travel decreased, less is known about modal shift among those who continued to travel during the pandemic or about the impact of these travel-behaviour changes on transport-related greenhouse gas emissions. Focusing on a university setting and drawing from a travel survey conducted in Fall 2020 in Montreal, Canada (n = 3358), this study examines modal shifts and quantifies greenhouse gas emissions at three time periods in the year 2020: pre-pandemic, early pandemic, and later pandemic. The pandemic resulted in a sharp reduction in travel to campus. Among those who continued to travel to campus (n = 1580), car-to-final destination mode share almost tripled at the start of the pandemic. The largest modal shift seen was the transition from walking, cycling, and transit, to driving at the beginning of the pandemic. Reductions in overall travel resulted in lower overall transport-related greenhouse gas emissions. However, if modal changes persist once students, staff, and academics return to campus, the transport carbon footprint is projected to increase above pre-pandemic levels. These results highlight the importance of putting in place policies that support a return to sustainable modes as universities and businesses reopen for in-person activities.