In response to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, governments have imposed orders upon or encouraged citizens to decrease physical contact to slow down the spread of the virus. Current literature from the United States infers that only workers from limited socioeconomic groups have the ability to practice remote work. However, there has been little research on mobility disparity across income groups in US cities during the pandemic. The authors tried to fill this gap by quantifying the impacts of the pandemic on human mobility by income group in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, Texas utilizing pseudonymized cell phone location data. A longitudinal study was performed on mobility as measured by the total travel distance, the radius of gyration, and the number of visited locations in April 2020 compared to the data in January and February 2020. An apparent disparity in mobility has been found across income groups. In particular, there was a strong negative correlation (\r{ho} = -0.90) between the estimated income bracket of a traveler and the travel distance in April. Furthermore, larger percentage drops among higher-income brackets in the radius of gyration and number of visited locations implied different adaptability in mobility. The findings of this study suggest a need to understand the reasons behind the mobility inflexibility among low-income populations during the pandemic.

中文翻译：

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COVID-19与社会隔离：按收入划分的流动适应差异

为了应对2019年冠状病毒疾病（COVID-19）大流行，政府已下令或鼓励公民减少身体接触，以减慢病毒的传播速度。美国的最新文献推论，只有来自有限社会经济群体的工人才有能力从事远程工作。然而，在大流行期间，关于美国各城市不同收入群体的流动差异的研究很少。作者试图通过使用假名化的手机位置数据来量化德克萨斯州休斯顿-伍德兰兹-糖地的收入人群的流行病对人类流动性的影响，以填补这一空白。通过总行驶距离，回转半径，与2020年1月和2020年2月的数据相比，2020年4月到访的地点数量有所变化。各收入群体之间的流动性差异明显。特别是，旅行者的预计收入水平与四月份的出行距离之间存在很强的负相关性（\ r {ho} = -0.90）。此外，在高收入阶层中，回转半径和走访地点数量的下降幅度较大，这意味着在机动性上有不同的适应性。这项研究的结果表明，有必要了解大流行期间低收入人群行动不便的背后原因。90）在旅行者的预计收入等级和四月的旅行距离之间。此外，在高收入阶层中，回转半径和走访地点数量的下降幅度较大，这意味着在机动性上有不同的适应性。这项研究的结果表明，有必要了解大流行期间低收入人群行动不便的背后原因。90）在旅行者的预计收入等级和四月的旅行距离之间。此外，在高收入阶层中，回转半径和走访地点数量的下降幅度较大，这意味着在机动性上有不同的适应性。这项研究的结果表明，有必要了解大流行期间低收入人群行动不便的背后原因。