Travel Behavior Changes after COVID-19 Outbreak in Taiwan

Table 3

Key timeline for COVID-19 in Taiwan.

Date	Events	Descriptions
January 7, 2020	Outbreak in Wuhan	As reported by the Central News Agency [4], the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control rated its travel advice for Wuhan as level 1
January 21, 2020	First confirmed case in Taiwan	After Taiwan’s first case was confirmed, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control [4] raised its travel advice for Wuhan, Hubei, China, to level 3 during the pandemic.
February 6, 2020	Real-name registration system for mask purchases	According to the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control [4], the world panicked to buy masks. In order to prohibit people from rushing to buy and hoard masks, the real-name registration system was implemented, which made masks available to those in need and ensured fair and transparent use of resources.
February 18, 2020	Diamond Princess was listed as an infected area	In a press release, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control [4] noted that the Central Epidemic Command Center announced that cruise ships had been listed as infected areas. Any Taiwanese passengers (including tourists and staff) on board who wanted to return home must take a charter flight in accordance with the arrangement of the Command Center and observe the quarantine measures.
February 27, 2020	Travel advice for Italy was raised to warning level 3	In a press release, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control [4] noted that the Central Epidemic Command Center said that the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in Italy had increased rapidly. Due to the increased risk of people traveling to Italy, the Command Center announced that the travel advisory for Italy would be raised to level 3: “Warning, reminding people not to travel unless necessary”.
March 17, 2020	Global travel advice was raised to warning level 1 or above	In a press release, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control [4] noted that the Central Epidemic Command Center said that the travel advice for 13 countries in Eastern Europe, 15 countries and 1 region in the Middle East, 5 countries in North Africa, and 9 countries in Central Asia would be raised to level 3 from 0:00 on 17 March: “Warning, reminding people not to travel unless necessary.”
April 1, 2020	First-stage notes for maintaining social distance	In a press release, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control [4] noted that the first stage is gentle persuasion. It is suggested that people avoid attending exhibitions, sports competitions, concerts, and other social activities with close contact, as well as entering entertainment places irrelevant to their livelihood. Moreover, it is suggested that people keep a distance of 1.5 m indoors and 1 m outdoors. If masks are worn correctly, social distancing can be exempted. However, masks shall be worn in crowded and closed places. If a place has a high probability of close contact and cannot effectively maintain a social distance of 1.5 m, the owner shall stop business.
April 30, 2020	New life movement during pandemic prevention	In a press release, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control [4] noted that, with the ease of the pandemic in Taiwan, it was hoped that people would feel assured to participate in various outdoor activities to enable people to return to normal life gradually. These activities include enjoying outdoor concerts, art performances, and sports events, or participating in outings, sports, tourism, and other activities beneficial to physical and mental health, under the condition of observing personal prevention measures (washing hands frequently, wearing masks when unable to maintain social distance, and when traveling by transit). In addition, when going out to eat in restaurants or at street vendors, people should choose those with proper dining distance, clapboard separators, and set meals.
June 7, 2020	Taiwan’s government has implemented relaxation of the pandemic control policy and started to lift the lockdown measures in a large-scale manner	The Central Epidemic Command Center announced that there would be no restrictions on the flow of people in the venues of art, food and beverage, and leisure activities. The Taiwan Railways and Taiwan High-Speed Rail will also lift the ban on eating and drinking and sell free seats. However, passengers of the MRT still need to wear masks due to the heavy passenger capacity.
July 15, 2020	Taiwan’s Executive Yuan promoted the “Triple Stimulus Voucher” program	In response to the economic recession caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Executive Yuan issued the Triple Stimulus Voucher program for economic revitalization. Starting from July 15, each person will receive a Triple Stimulus Voucher worth NT$3,000.
December 21, 2020	The reappearance of local infection cases in Taiwan	A confirmed case, a New Zealand EVA pilot, infected 2 colleagues and 1 friend, breaking the record of 0 local cases in Taiwan for 81 days.
January 12, 2021	The outbreak of the second wave of local infection cases in Taiwan	According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Taoyuan Hospital experienced a cluster outbreak of infections. A lockdown was implemented for some areas in the hospital for containment. There were 21 confirmed cases.
February 20, 2021	The Ministry of Health and Welfare in Taiwan authorized the use of the AZ vaccine	TFDA, MOHW announced the approval to authorize the use of the AZ vaccine and approved vaccines produced by manufacturers in Germany, South Korea, and Italy.
March 3, 2021	The first batch of AZ vaccines in Taiwan began to be distributed	The first batch of AZ vaccines began to be distributed in 57 hospitals across Taiwan
April 20, 2021	A large-scale outbreak of local infection cases	The scope of infection continued to expand, affecting various areas, including Wanhua District, Taipei City, Luzhou District, New Taipei City, Yilan County, and other areas. Since then, Taiwan entered a period of large-scale infection outbreaks, where the source of infection is unknown.
May 15, 2021	Taipei City and New Taipei City were upgraded to level 3 alert	The Executive Yuan and the Central Epidemic Command Center announced that Taipei City and New Taipei City areas have entered level 3 alert. The three main measures are (1) wear masks all the time when going out; (2) no gatherings of more than 5 people indoors and more than 10 people outdoors; (3) business and public areas, except for those for life support, order maintenance, essential services, medical, and official needs, should be closed.
May 19, 2021	All areas in Taiwan upgraded to level 3 alert	From now until May 28, the national pandemic alert has been raised to level 3.
May 28, 2021	Level 3 alert period extended for the second time across Taiwan	With the undiscovered hidden cases in the communities, the alert was extended to June 14.
June 07, 2021	Level 3 alert period extended for the third time across Taiwan	Level 3 alert was extended for the third time until 28 June. As of June 07, 2021, the cumulative number of confirmed cases in Taiwan reached 11,491.
June 14, 2021	The outbreak of the first Delta variant infection case in Taiwan	After home isolation, citizens returning to Taiwan from Peru were diagnosed on June 14. After genetic sequencing, the virus strain was confirmed to be the Delta variant virus strain.
June 23, 2021	Level 3 alert period extended for the fourth time across Taiwan	Level 3 alert was extended for the fourth time to 12 July. As of June 23, 2021, the cumulative number of confirmed cases in Taiwan reached 14,260.