Interaction between travel restriction policies and the spread of COVID-19

To investigate the interaction between travel restriction policies and the spread of COVID-19, the authors collected data on human mobility trends, population density, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, daily new confirmed cases (or deaths), and the total confirmed cases (or deaths), as well as governmental travel restriction policies from 33 countries. The data collection period was from April 2020 to February 2022, resulting in 24,090 data points. They then developed a structural causal model to describe the causal relationship between these variables. Using the Dowhy method to solve the developed model, they found several significant results that passed the refutation test. Specifically, travel restriction policies played an important role in slowing the spread of COVID-19 until May 2021. International travel controls and school closures had an impact on reducing the spread of the pandemic beyond the impact of travel restrictions. Additionally, May 2021 marked a turning point in the spread of COVID-19 as it became more infectious, but the mortality rate gradually decreased. The impact of travel restriction policies on human mobility and the pandemic diminished over time. Overall, the cancellation of public events and restrictions on public gatherings were more effective than other travel restriction policies. Their findings provide insights into the effects of travel restriction policies and travel behavioral changes on the spread of COVID-19, while controlling for informational and other confounding variables. This experience can be applied in the future to respond to emergent infectious diseases.

• Record URL:
  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tranpol.2023.04.002
• Record URL:
  http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0967070X23000896
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/oclc/29485010
• Supplemental Notes:
  • © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Abstract reprinted with permission of Elsevier.
• Authors:
  • Meng, Xin
  • Guo, Mingxue
  • Gao, Ziyou
  • Kang, Liujiang
• Publication Date: 2023-6

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Web
• Features: Appendices; Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 209-227
• Serial:
  • Transport Policy
  • Volume: 136
  • Issue Number: 0
  • Publisher: Elsevier
  • ISSN: 0967-070X
  • Serial URL: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/issn/096707X

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: COVID-19; Mobility; Policy; Public health; Travel restrictions
• Subject Areas: Passenger Transportation; Policy; Safety and Human Factors; Security and Emergencies;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01881047
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Apr 25 2023 9:49AM