Car enthusiasm during the second and fourth waves of COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

This paper investigates the car enthusiasm of Polish residents during the second and fourth waves of the pandemic. We try to answer if the car enthusiasm has changed between October 2020 and October 2021. Furthermore, we looked into the attitudes and beliefs of respondents about transport modes and their use, their perceived quality of life, and their opinions about sustainability and ecological lifestyle. We use a computer-assisted web interview (CAWI) survey in two rounds (October 2020 and October 2021). For data analysis, a structural equation modeling (SEM) model was proposed. We observe important changes in car enthusiasm between those two waves of the pandemic. Firstly, car enthusiasm was higher in 2021 than in 2020. Secondly, it was positively correlated with the ecological orientation of respondents. Thirdly, Y-generation respondents were less car enthusiastic. Fourthly, the influence of life quality on car enthusiasm was stronger in the fourth pandemic wave than during the second one.