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Implications Of Covid-19 Mitigation Policies On Recreational Trail Users: Exploring Antecedents To Physical Distancing On Trails Across The Rural-Urban Continuum, Christopher J. Wynveen, Ingrid Schneider, Deonne Vanderwoude, Taylor Stein, Heather Gibson, Kim Shinew, William Hendricks, Megha Budruk

Journal of Rural Social Sciences

The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent travel restrictions led to a worldwide increase in greenspace use. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention encouraged policies including physical distancing and COVID-related signage. However, the extent to which these policies influenced behavior is unknown. To fill this gap, we report on a 2020 observational study at 14 trails across six U.S. states framed within a social-ecological model. Behavioral observations of 8,093 groups assessed compliance rates with infection-mitigation behaviors. Additionally, we noted the presence of COVID-related signs, the days between the observation and stay-at-home order start date, the setting (i.e., urban, suburban, and …