Impact of Teleworking on Travel Behaviour During the COVID-19 Era: The Case Of Sicily, Italy

As a result of the travel restrictions and governmental guidelines imposed on many countries during the COVID-19 crisis, a significant increase in teleworking has been observed. New policies led to major changes in the lifestyle of millions of citizens all around the world and will permanently affect their travel behaviour. This paper aims to investigate and analyse the impact of teleworking on transportation habits, focusing on walking and commuting before and during the pandemic. Data regarding the walking frequency fluctuations due to teleworking were collected through structured questionnaires in Sicily, Italy. Most respondents seem to believe that it can be a factor leading to a decrease in their walking trips and to a change in their associated walking habits and behaviour. In this study, the rebound effects of telecommuting with respect to vehicle usage are taken into consideration. Although, it can result in a smaller number of trips weekly, the net amount of distance travelled per person can be larger, as employees are more willing to commute farther considering they will not commute as often. However, for longer distances, people tend to use trains since it allows working while commuting. This can result in reduced traffic, especially at peak times and consequently have a positive social and environmental impact, less stress and less air and noise pollution from private vehicles. An increasing number of companies is announcing the decision of pivoting to teleworking even after the pandemic is over. Policy makers and urban planners can use telecommuting as a tool that contributes to relieving traffic and seek ways to introduce a more sustainable future of work and mobility in the post-pandemic world.