The legal street: a scarcity approach to urban open space in mobility transitions

Brett J. M. Petzer,Geert P. J. Verbong,Anna J. Wieczorek

doi:10.1186/s42854-021-00018-0

Brett J. M. Petzer, Geert P. J. Verbong + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s42854-021-00018-0

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Journal: Urban Transformations	Publication Date: Feb 17, 2021
Citations: 9	License type: open-access

Affiliation: Eindhoven University of Technology

Abstract

An urban mobility transition requires a transition in space allocation, since most mobility modes are dependent on urban open space for circulation and the storage of vehicles. Despite increasing attention to space and spatiality in transitions research, the finite, physical aspects of urban space, and the means by which it is allocated, have not been adequately acknowledged as an influence on mobility transitions. A conceptual framework is introduced to support comparison between cities in terms of the processes by which open space is (re-)distributed between car and bicycle circulatory and regulatory space. This framework distinguishes between regulatory allocation mechanisms and the appropriation practices of actors. Application to cases in Amsterdam, Brussels and Birmingham reveal unique relationships created by the zero-sum nature of urban open space between the dominant automobility mode and subordinate cycling mode. These relationships open up a new approach to forms of lock-in that work in favour of particular mobility modes within the relatively obdurate urban built environment. Empirically, allocation mechanisms that routinise the production of car space at national level within the EU are shown to be far more prevalent than those for bicycle space, highlighting the constraints faced by radical city-level policies aimed at space reallocation.

Highlights

A number of cities worldwide have resolved to initiate a transition towards sustainability (UN Habitat 2013; Loorbach 2016)
Legislation and the ‘legal street’ While trans-European road infrastructure is governed by international and European-level agreements; and trunk, primary or through-roads are typically subject to distinct national laws; urban space, and the roads and streets that serve it, have historically been governed at the local level
The differences revealed in the legal streets for the cases above show that automobility space allocation mechanisms have been relatively strong all over the European Union (EU) until the beginning of this century

Summary

Introduction

A number of cities worldwide have resolved to initiate a transition towards sustainability (UN Habitat 2013; Loorbach 2016) Such a transition implies radical changes in the way cities organise vital systems, such as urban mobility (Frantzeskaki et al 2017). In this paper we argue that this process is difficult partly because an urban mobility transition implies an urban space transition, since automobility, in common with most mobility modes, is highly dependent on access to the open space required both to move and to store vehicles (Prytherch 2015) For this reason, we focus on spatial aspects of sustainable urban mobility, which have received relatively little attention in comparison with themes such as low-carbon propulsion systems, automated driving and shared mobility (Banister 2008). By ‘allocation’, we refer essentially to the relative distribution of designated spaces within the envelope of urban open space, rather than the means by which that (regulatory) distribution is communicated or expressed (that is, through signage, visual markings, physical infrastructure, paving and surfacing, etc.)

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