COVID-19 effects on CO2 emission by automobile usage in urban areas

Analyzing the changes between before, during, and after the first state of emergency

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused the avoidance of public transport and more use of private cars as a result of the declaration of a state of emergency, measures such as social distancing, and fear of being infected. This study aimed to reveal the changes in automobile usage and its environmental effect in urban areas through the first state of emergency. The automobile CO2 emission amount was calculated using a lifestyle activity survey from before the pandemic, during the first state of emergency, and after the lifting of the state of emergency. We compared the changes in automobile CO2 emission between socio-demographic groups and cities. A density and automobile dependence theory by Newman and Kenworthy was also tested. Results show that (i) the CO2 emission by automobile usage exceeded the before-pandemic level in most socio-demographic groups and cities after the first state of emergency, and (ii) the CO2 emission gap among urban density levels was polarized.