Social inclusion and the urban renaissance without the car

Clark, Julie (2010) Social inclusion and the urban renaissance without the car. PhD thesis, University of Glasgow.

Abstract

The urban renaissance seems to present a win-win scenario for social policy, promising greater social inclusion along with lower levels of car ownership and use. This thesis aims to evaluate the extent to which an urban renaissance might reduce levels of car ownership without inhibiting social inclusion and assess the potential for de-coupling rising family incomes from increasing levels of car ownership and use. A sequential mixed-methods research design is used to investigate the relationships between social inclusion and mobility within an urban context from two perspectives: the first phase of the research uses bivariate analysis and multiple logistic regression to test the relative importance of social inclusion, demographic determinants and spatial factors as a means of understanding household car ownership; the results of these analyses inform the second phase of the research, which adopts a case study approach in order to understand the role of social inclusion and urban form in modulating driver behaviour. A hybrid narrative/semi-structured interview technique allows longitudinal insights into the perspectives of residents from four urban areas, varying by density and centrality.
Quantitative analysis, sampling the general population of Great Britain, indicates that inclusion on the dimensions of civic and social interaction is independent of level of car ownership. Furthermore it is shown that the impact of household income on levels of car ownership is mediated by urbanisation on three spatial tiers: settlement, neighbourhood and property levels. The qualitative phase confirms different patterns of car use as well as of car ownership across different urban areas, demonstrating that radical (and unplanned) changes in modal choice can follow relocation to more dense and central urban environments. The size and perceived quality of residential properties, along with the presence of greenspace and local shops, can build place attachment to relatively dense urban environments; increased levels of walking and consequent familiarity with other local residents were found to be core components of this process.

• Item Type: Thesis (PhD)
• Qualification Level: Doctoral
• Keywords: Urban, social inclusion, car.
• Subjects: H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General); H Social Sciences > HE Transportation and Communications
• Colleges/Schools: College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Urban Studies
• Supervisor's Name: Pryce, Prof. Gwilym and Docherty, Prof. Iain
• Date of Award: 2010
• Depositing User: Ms Julie Clark
• Unique ID: glathesis:2010-2261
• Copyright: Copyright of this thesis is held by the author.
• Date Deposited: 03 Dec 2010
• Last Modified: 12 Apr 2019 09:52
• URI: https://theses.gla.ac.uk/id/eprint/2261