1st Edition

A Mobile Century? Changes in Everyday Mobility in Britain in the Twentieth Century

    270 Pages
    by Routledge

    270 Pages
    by Routledge

    For most people in the developed world, the ability to travel freely on a daily basis is almost taken for granted. Although there is a large volume of literature on contemporary mobility and associated transport problems, there are no comprehensive studies of the ways in which these trends have changed over time. This book provides a detailed empirical analysis of mobility change in Britain over the twentieth century. Beginning with an explanatory theoretical overview, setting the UK case studies within an international context, the book then analyses changes in the journey to school, the journey to work, and travelling for pleasure. It also looks at the ways in which changes in mobility have interacted with changes in the family life cycle and assesses the impact of new transport technologies on everyday mobility. It concludes by examining the implications of past mobility change for contemporary transport policy.

    Contents: The significance of travel and mobility; Mobility and society; Reconstructing mobilities; Changes in everyday mobility: an overview; Travelling to school; Travelling to work; Travel for leisure and pleasure: children playing and hanging around; Travel for leisure and pleasure: entertainment, sport, shopping and holidays; Mobility, family and the life course; Transport policies, technologies and the experience of everyday mobility; The lessons of history: mobility change and contemporary transport policy; Bibliography; Index.

    Biography

    Colin Pooley is Professor of Social and Historical Geography, at Lancaster University, UK. Jean Turnbull is Centre Administrator for the Centre for North West Regional Studies, Lancaster University, UK. Mags Adams is Research Fellow in the Acoustics Research Centre, at the University of Salford, UK.

    ’...[a] significant study which raises important questions for transport planning as well as providing real insights into the way ordinary folk moved around in their daily lives over the twentieth century.’ Family and Community History ’...A Mobile Century? is full of insights and interesting facts...’ Local Population Studies