How to promote sustainable travel behavior in the post COVID-19 period: A perspective from customized bus services

•We analyzed commuters’ mode shift in the pre and post COVID-19 period.•Preference for customized buses decreased with increasing fare and travel time.•Middle-class commuters had a higher preference to commute by customized bus.•Specific policies were provided to promote the sustainable travel behavior. The Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has influenced the daily life of urban residents worldwide. In the post COVID-19 period, the proportion of public transport commuting trips decreased, whereas that of car commuting trips increased. As a sustainable travel mode, customized bus services have been promoted to ensure the public health security during commuting in this period in many cities in China and other countries. This study focused on the promotion of sustainable travel behavior in the post COVID-19 period from the perspective of customized bus services. A total of 664 respondents from Shanghai, China participated in this study to provide revealed preference (RP) and stated preference (SP) data related to the customized bus services in the post COVID-19 period. The mode choice model was established based on the hypothetical scenarios to estimate the commuters’ intention to shift to the customized bus services, determine the mode preference of different groups, and suggest potential policies. The results showed that the preference for customized buses decreased with the increasing fare for one journey, the travel time, and the availability of a one-way ticket, and middle-class commuters had a higher preference for commuting by customized bus. The measures for the short and long term in the post COVID-19 period were proposed. The results of this study can help governments adopt policies to promote customized bus services not only in the post COVID-19 period but also during regular daily life.