Big increase in 'footfall' in Sheffield on Tuesday revealed by phone tracking data

Footfall on the first Tuesday in March was 116,494 - up from to 83,128 on the same day last year. The figures, from data company Place Informatics, were gathered by tracking people’s mobile phones.

Boss Clive Hall said it showed "worker behaviour" had changed since the pandemic.

He added: “Tuesdays have seen a huge increase in popularity which we believe is due to millions choosing to work from home on Mondays and then venturing back to the office or scheduling meetings on Tuesdays. It is however surprising to see how busy Tuesdays have become, surpassing Sundays and even Saturdays in some towns.”

All pandemic restrictions ended in February 2022 under then prime minister Boris Johnson’s ‘Living with Covid Plan’.

Place Infomatics says it measures footfall using ‘permission-based mobility data’ which is anonymised. The firm did not explain further. On Twitter, people wondered how it worked.

Andy Turner said: “Could be through an app, where default is opt-in. People don’t read the detail. Also, only a subset of people with smartphones are the survey sample. Flaky research?”

Graham Parker said: “I imagine it's the same as agreeing to cookies on your phone.”

Nigel Slack commented: “Could it also be via the city centre wifi? They must be getting something out of giving it away for free.”

Tony Carroll said: “I believe Sheffield uses the Springboard camera foot counters. But also, you are geolocated constantly by your mobile. Check Google Maps 'Popular Times' for a location to see average and live data.”