Tendencia de movilidad post COVID en ciudades intermedias del Ecuador, caso de estudio: Riobamba

Abstract

In the city of Riobamba, there have been changes in the mobility of people due to the COVID-19 pandemic, decreasing the use of public transportation and resulting in low operation of public transit and preference for individual means of transportation. This study aimed to determine post-COVID mobility trends in intermediate cities in Ecuador and the case study Riobamba. For its development, a methodology with a mixed approach was applied, integrating research instruments such as interviews to determine the actions carried out by the Directorate of Management, Transit and Transportation of the city, a survey to obtain information on transportation preferences after the pandemic and observation sheets to know the current state of signaling in the longitudinal, transversal and Bicentennial bicycle lanes. Using this methodology, it can be emphasized that four cities were analyzed (Riobamba, Ambato, Santo Domingo, and Machala), which have undergone significant changes, especially in the choice and preference of means of travel due to the global health crisis. In the case of Riobamba, the predominant means of transportation currently includes private vehicles (32%), followed by bicycles (27%); these preferences were influenced by the need to maintain preventive health precautions. It should be noted that there are currently 16.5 km of infrastructure for cyclists, which requires intervention to ensure safe travel conditions. Based on this analysis, three strategies are proposed focusing on sustainable mobility, integrating a reference budget of $14603.90.