Changes in recreational behaviors of outdoor enthusiasts during the COVID-19 pandemic: analysis across urban and rural communities

The COVID-19 pandemic presents not only a global health crisis but has also disrupted the daily lives of people around the world. From a leisure perspective, urban outdoor enthusiasts are one group particularly impacted by the pandemic and the subsequent institutional response. Stay-at-home orders and physical distancing recommendations serve as potential inhibitors to outdoor recreation activities central to the lifestyles and wellbeing of outdoor enthusiasts. In urban areas, where these orders and recommendations are most restrictive, the potential impacts on recreation behavior are most consequential. This study provides an empirical analysis of the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on the recreational behaviors of outdoor enthusiasts across urban and rural communities. Results suggest that the frequency of outdoor recreation participation, distance travelled to participate in outdoor recreation and distance travelled beyond roads during outdoor recreation have declined significantly more among outdoor enthusiasts residing in urban areas than urban clusters or rural areas

Adaptation and Application of Micro-Simulation Modeling to Recreational Use of Parks and Public Lands

The University of Vermont\u2019s (UVM) Park Studies Laboratory (PSL) and Applied Trails Research (ATR) undertook a program of cooperative research with the purpose of building foundational transportation research expertise using advanced technologies for integrated transportation and land use modeling to examine the complex systems linking and supporting the sustainability of transportation, tourism travel, and recreation in parks and on public lands. The development of this expertise will allow UVM to help satisfy the large and growing needs of transportation and recreation researchers and managers for state of the art simulation modeling. Building foundational expertise in transportation and recreation simulation modeling require researchers from the PSL and ATR to work closely in all phases of the work from planning, through execution, to communication of findings and lessons learned. Simulation modeling efforts undertaken as part of this collaboration identified, tested, and optimized indicators of quality for both transportation and recreation systems and opportunities. That is, simulation models were designed and operated to examine both the functional and experiential qualities of transportation and recreation facilities and operations representative of parks and public lands

American Trails "Shovel-ready" Trail Project Survey

The purpose of the American Trails “Shovel-ready” Trail Project Survey was to document the contribution the trails community can make to the American economic response to and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey was conducted between May 13 and May 30, 2020. Survey respondents were recruited using a purposive snow-ball approach via the membership and email lists of American Trails, the Trails Move People coalition, and the formal and informal networks of their members. A total of 1,058 individuals responded to the survey. Half (50%) of respondents were affiliated with NGOs or non-profits as employees or volunteers; 41% worked for government at the federal, state, or local level; 8% were in the private sector either as trail professionals or private land owners or managers. Respondents were asked to provide location, budget, employment, and other project characteristic information about “shovel-ready” projects under their management. “Shovel-ready” Definition "Shovel-ready" trail projects are projects that, if funding is available and working conditions are safe, could be providing jobs by the summer of 2021. A project can be "shovel-ready" in any phase of development (e.g., acquisition/ROW, planning, design, construction, maintenance), as long as jobs would be created before summer 2021 if the project were funded now