Trail visits in Ireland during the COVID-19 pandemic: Using multiple data sources to describe trends
Oral Presentation B1.4
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14288/hfjc.v14i3.482Keywords:
Walking, Footfall Counters, COVID-19, Trail Use, MonitoringAbstract
Background: There has been some effort to understand changes in recreational walking in Ireland during the COVID-19 pandemic period, yet little is known about recreational walking trail usage during the same period. Purpose: To use footfall count data and other forms of open-source mobility data to describe trends in trail usage in Ireland before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Footfall count data were gathered from passive infra-red (PIR) sensors on 33 Irish walking trails and analysed between January 2019 and December 2020. Google Community Mobility Report (GCMR) data were also analysed to corroborate the footfall count data. Descriptive statistics were employed to highlight trends in footfall over time. Results: Total footfall counts increased by 5% between 2019 and 2020 on the trails included in this analysis. During phases of movement restrictions, trails that were <2km from urban areas were more frequently used than more remote trails. GCMR data from park areas mirrored findings found within the footfall analysis. Mean footfall on trails was 29% higher in December 2020 (when movement restrictions were lifted) than December 2019. Conclusions: The conclusions of this study are twofold. Firstly, openly available data, such as aggregated mobility data can be used to corroborate findings from PIR sensors. Secondly, the COVID-19 pandemic has left a legacy of increased recreational walking trail usage in Ireland, especially on trails closer to urban areas. There is now an opportunity to sustain this increase in trail usage through better understanding of the determinants of trail use. Funding: This study is part of a PhD project which is co-funded by Waterford Institute of Technology and Get Ireland Walking.
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Copyright (c) 2021 Dylan Power, Barry Lambe, Niamh Murphy
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