Measuring the attractiveness of trip destinations based on human mobility data

This study proposes a novel concept of a regional attractiveness index based on human mobility flows. Assuming that individuals' mobility choice is based on utility maximization, this study aims to recover the attractiveness of trip destinations by estimating the gravity equation for interregional trip flows. Using mobility data from a person trip survey and mobile phone data in Japan, this study investigates whether different trip purposes (e.g., commuting to office and school, recreational trips, business trips, and returning home) and seasonal and tourism factors (e.g., holidays, events, and amusement facilities) can reveal spatial and temporal variations in the attractiveness of trip destinations. This study found that the proposed approach using interregional trip flows can effectively capture the extent to which trip destinations attract people. As real-time human mobility data become increasingly available, the new index of regional attractiveness is expected to become a key performance indicator for daily monitoring of urban and regional economies.