Behavioral changes analysis in travel patterns in the post-pandemic era

COVID-19 and the corresponding governmental interventions, such as international and domestic travel restrictions, school closures, and the suspension of non-essential commercial activities, significantly restricted people’s travel mobility. These measures not only altered travel frequency but also reshaped travel preferences. In the post-pandemic era, travel behavior has evolved into a new normative framework. Utilizing the Mixture Latent Markov Model, this study conducts latent transition analysis to investigate the dynamics of individual travel behavior across three distinct phases: before, during, and after the pandemic, with a specific focus on Canada. The results indicate that in Canada, travelers with monthly public transport passes (Class 1) and those with annual passes (Class 2) exhibited distinct mobility patterns. During the pandemic, Class 1 travelers shifted from bus and walking to other travel modes, while in the post-pandemic period they increasingly transferred to metro and private transportation.