Journal Article Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Epublish 2 citations
PubMed: 38388363 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-024-17964-6
COVID-19 control measures unexpectedly increased the duration of stay at High Speed Rail stations during the first community outbreak in Taiwan.
BMC Public Health 24(1):551
Authors: Ning Chang, Yi-Chen Tsai, Wei J Chen, Chung-Chuan Lo, Hsiao-Han Chang
Affiliations
- Institute of Systems Neuroscience, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan.
- Institute of Information Management, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan.
- Centers of Genomic and Precision Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan. Institute of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, College of Public Health, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan. Center for Neuropsychiatric Research, National Health Research Institutes, Zhunan, Miaoli County, Taiwan.
- Institute of Systems Neuroscience, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan.
- Brain Research Center, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan.
- Department of Life Science and Institute of Bioinformatics and Structural Biology, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan.
Abstract
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Taiwan has implemented strict border controls and community spread prevention measures. As part of these efforts, the government also implemented measures for public transportation. In Taiwan, there are two primary public transportation systems: Taiwan Railways (TR) is commonly utilized for local travel, while the Taiwan High-Speed Rail (THSR) is preferred for business trips and long-distance journeys due to its higher speed. In this study, we examined the impact of these disease prevention measures on the number of passengers and duration of stay in two major public transportation systems during the first community outbreak from April 29th to May 29th, 2021. Using data from a local telecommunications company, our study observed an expected decrease in the number of passengers after the cancellation of non-reserved seats at both TR and THSR stations across all 19 cities in the main island of Taiwan. Surprisingly, however, the duration of stay in some of the cities unexpectedly increased, especially at THSR stations. This unanticipated rise in the duration of stay has the potential to elevate contact probability among passengers and, consequently, the transmission rate. Our analysis shows that intervention policies may result in unforeseen outcomes, highlighting the crucial role of human mobility data as a real-time reference for policymakers. It enables them to monitor the impact of disease prevention measures and facilitates informed, data-driven decision-making.
MeSH
Transportation, Cities, Public Health, Covid-19