Association between perceived risk of COVID-19 and support for transportation policies

The association between perceived risk of COVID-19 at the individual level and support for transportation policies designed to mitigate coronavirus transmission has received little attention. We surveyed a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults (N = 2,011) in June 2020 to examine how support for public policy varied according to perceived risk. We used logistic regression models to control for demographic factors and identify the effect of perceived risk, defined as a combination of self-reported perceptions of personal risk of acquiring the disease and the severity of the illness if infected, on support for a range of policies related to transportation. We found that perceived risk did not vary significantly by sex, race, urbanicity, income, or age. Support for policies aimed at mitigating COVID-19 transmission was consistently higher among those with higher perceived risk of the disease.