Socioeconomic Disparities in Daily Activity Spaces: Insights from Smartphone Mobility Data on Non-Commuting Trips

Abstract

This paper examines how income, age, and gender shape non-commuting mobility patterns in Seoul using large-scale anonymised smartphone mobility data combined with neighbourhood-level income information. Focusing on leisure, caregiving, shopping, and other discretionary trips, the study measures two complementary indicators of mobility: activity space distance, representing the spatial reach of daily movement, and destination diversity, measured through Shannon entropy. Mobility patterns are analysed across four periods of the day, while Gini coefficients are used to assess inequalities within demographic and socioeconomic groups. The results demonstrate clear intergroup disparities: higher-income individuals travel farther and visit a wider variety of destinations, whereas lower-income residents, middle-aged women, and older adults experience more spatially constrained mobility. The analysis also reveals substantial intragroup inequalities, showing that people with similar demographic characteristics may experience markedly different levels of mobility depending on their neighbourhood. Temporal analysis indicates that mobility inequalities vary throughout the day, with evening and nighttime periods exhibiting greater disparities than morning travel. The findings highlight the importance of considering both the scale and diversity of daily movement when evaluating urban accessibility and social inclusion, and support the development of inclusive, place-sensitive, and time-aware mobility policies aimed at reducing socioeconomic inequalities in urban environments.