Background: As a reaction to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), countries around the globe have implemented various measures to reduce the spread of the virus. The transportation sector is particularly affected by the pandemic situation. The current study aims to contribute to the empirical knowledge regarding the effects of the coronavirus situation on the mobility of people by (1) broadening the perspective to the mobility rural area’s residents and (2) providing subjective data concerning the perceived changes of affected persons’ mobility practices, as these two aspects have scarcely been considered in research so far. Methods: To address these research gaps, a mixed-methods study was conducted that integrates a qualitative telephone interview study (N = 15) and a quantitative household survey (N = 301). The rural district of Altmarkkreis Salzwedel in Northern Germany was chosen as a model region. Results: The results provide in-depth insights into the changing mobility practices of residents of a rural area during the legal restrictions to stem the spread of the virus. A high share of respondents (62.6%) experienced no changes in their mobility behavior due to the COVID-19 pandemic situation. However, nearly one third of trips were also cancelled overall. A modal shift was observed towards the reduction of trips by car and bus, and an increase of trips by bike. The share of trips by foot was unchanged. The majority of respondents did not predict strong long-term effects of the corona pandemic on their mobility behavior.

Inattentiveness of road users on approach to passive railway crossings represents a major threat to level crossing safety. An auxiliary strobe light system installed on trains in addition to existing headlights may help address this issue by providing an ergonomic way of attracting human attention to the level crossing and to the train. The objective of this paper was to investigate the ergonomics and safety potential of auxiliary strobe light systems. A system was implemented on a real railway vehicle and in the virtual environment of a driving simulator. Acceptance of the system, including its usefulness and perceived benefits and drawbacks, as well as its objective effectiveness, were evaluated using questionnaires, behavioural measures, and eye tracking. The safety potential of the system was evaluated with respect to fatal level crossing accidents. The auxiliary strobe lights were preferred over normal lights and were rated as useful, reducing driving speeds, increasing visual scanning at level crossings, and thus aiding detection of a train. The system has the potential to prevent 6-30% of level crossing accidents in Europe. The results suggest that it might be worthwhile to test auxiliary strobe lights in a larger scale real-world experiment. Especially on railway lines with a high number of passive level crossings, this system can be expected to increase safety by supporting timely detection by road users and preventing accidents caused by inattentiveness.

Future mobility concepts, such as Shared Autonomous Mobility-on-Demand (SAMOD) services, have the potential to contribute to sustainability goals and enhance connectivity between rural areas and urban public transport networks. The SAMOD concept relies on virtual stops, accessible via a smartphone application, where passengers are individually picked up. This study analyzed the importance of six key attributes of a SAMOD journey: travel time, price, available information, distance to the stop, navigation to the virtual stop, and identification of the virtual stop. Using a choice-based conjoint analysis (N = 461), participants were repeatedly presented with two SAMOD journey options, each varying in attributes, and were asked to indicate their preference. The findings reveal that all six attributes significantly influenced travel decisions. Subgroup analyses further indicated that the importance of these attributes varied by gender, age, travel context, and frequency of public transport use. Notably, SAMOD-specific attributes, such as navigation to and identification of the virtual stop, were rated as nearly as critical as traditional factors like travel time and cost. Based on these findings, actionable recommendations for transport planners and policymakers are proposed to facilitate the successful implementation of SAMOD services.

Before the implementation of new mobility solutions, it is often difficult to encourage and enable potential users to participate in the design process, to predict acceptance, and to determine the influence of individual design parameters on use intentions. A serious game involving repeated mobility choices and, at the same time, fun to play might be a useful tool to allow for user studies and participation in this situation. We developed a concept of such a game in the context of intermodal transport. A first prototype was implemented and subjected to an early test with respect to user experience and usability through an evaluation with seven experts. At the current state of development, flow experience, measured by the flow short scale (FKS), was medium. Usability, measured by the system usability scale (SUS), was low, and the heuristic evaluation yielded many hints for improvement. Based on the insights gained, the development of the game will be continued to prepare it for a user test assessing the potential of the method for studying user preferences in the transport system.