School Travel Behaviors in Rural Communities: Pandemic-Related Impacts

Abstract

The global pandemic, which started around early 2020, significantly disrupted life for many families, and the trip to and from school was not immune to these disruptions. Parents and children alike made travel adjustments depending on their preferences with regard to personal health and safety, social distancing, and aversion to risk. Each school district and individual school also made decisions with regard to in-person or remote learning during this period of uncertainty. In this study, the research team examines how the pandemic affected school transportation for hundreds of families across the Pacific Northwest. An online survey was developed and administered with the help of Qualtrics, an experience management company. Over 600 responses were gathered to assess school transportation-related travel decisions. In addition to collecting demographic data about the respondents, the survey also asked about travel mode choices and characteristics of the trip to and from school. The collective results were then analyzed to determine which factors directly contributed to pandemic-related changes in travel behavior. The study concluded that the demographic factors of parent education level, household income, and age of child were all statistically significant variables that affected behavioral change, though the place of household residence, whether rural or urban, was determined to be an insignificant variable. Additionally, common travel assumptions associated with rural students, when compared with urban students, were confirmed. These factors included a greater reliance on a yellow school bus and lesser availability of critical infrastructure.