The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about a dramatic shift in the global workforce, with remote and hybrid work policies becoming the new norm. Urban landscapes and real estate markets have been significantly impacted by this shift, most notably in the differences in value for spaces used for office, residential, and commercial purposes. Urban and digital environments change how we work, live, and entertain in our cities, from land use and transportation to the basics of the real estate market. The new reality is baked into the real estate market, and it can be quantified in real estate values. Following a literature review of the impact of remote work on real estate markets, the paper focuses on the residential real estate markets of Athens and Thessaloniki, the two largest cities in Greece with the highest concentration of economic activities and employment, and therefore the highest rate of teleworking in the country. It draws on quantitative and qualitative data to examine the impacts of remote work on the rental and housing sales markets of the two cities.
This study examines women’s perceived safety across five squares in Uberl–ndia, Brazil, revealing spatial and temporal variations influenced by factors such as lighting and maintenance. Using emotion-sensitive mixed methods, including surveys and emotional mapping, the study shows that women’s ability to move freely and engage in daily activities is shaped by the urban environment’s material features, fear, and prior experiences. Findings highlight intra-square differences and the nuanced realities of women’s safety beyond large metropolitan areas, demonstrating micro-spatial variations in public spaces. Results emphasize the need for gender-responsive urban planning that accounts for emotional and material factors to promote women’s mobility and safety.
This article examines guarded bus stops (GBSs), known in Brazil as Abrigo Amigo , as an emerging response to women’s fear of crime in Latin American urban transport systems. Drawing on a convenience sample survey of residents in selected Brazilian cities and fieldwork observations, the study analyses how users interpret these interventions in relation to usability and perceived safety, with particular attention to gendered mobility. Situating the analysis within the broader context of high crime rates, socio-spatial inequality, and uneven provision of public transportation in Latin American cities, the paper conceptualizes bus stops as micro-scale elements of the built environment that actively shape safety in public space. The findings indicate that while GBSs have the potential to enhance individuals’ safety perceptions and to support their use of public transport, they also introduce new forms of digitally mediated surveillance that reconfigure everyday experiences in these environments. This duality raises questions about inclusion and the governance of urban safety.
This study applies environmental criminology principles to examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on transit-related crime in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Drawing on police records (2018–2022), land-use data, and socioeconomic indicators, it combines hotspot mapping with regression analyses across pre-pandemic, early-pandemic, and post-restriction phases. Results reveal a U-shaped temporal pattern, with crime hotspots shifting from central corridors to intermediate areas before reconsolidating along major mobility axes. Crime risk is consistently associated with commercial density, transit infrastructure, and socioeconomic vulnerability, while effect sizes vary over time. Findings support the routine activity approach, showing that crime adapts to changes in mobility flows while spatial opportunity structures remain resilient to major shocks. Robbery recovers more slowly than theft, indicating differentiated responses to shifts in transit use. The study shows how pandemic-induced mobility disruptions reshaped urban crime and underscores the need for improved transit-area design and targeted policing in high-risk peripheral corridors.
