The car is being called more and more into question in cities due to its impact on, for example, congestion, air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. However, since the "system of automobility" appears to be very resilient, it is important to understand how it can be overcome. Car-free housing projects, where residents commit to living without a private car in the long term, represent laboratories for a post-car system. A mixed-method study of nine developments in Germany and Switzerland shows that residents adopt four types of strategies. They take full advantage of cycling and public transport and use mobility and transport services. They favour proximity and transit accessibility in their everyday life, and rely on their community. Moreover, a favourable social (legal and social norms) and spatial context (infrastructures and built environment) are necessary to enable people to live without a private car.
Abstract. Automobility still dominates transport and space in most European cities.
However, more and more initiatives are being taken to encourage a transition towards low-carbon mobility. One of these is car-free housing, where residents commit to living without a private car. This paper addresses their profiles and motivations based on a questionnaire survey (N=571) and interviews (N=50) in nine housing developments in Germany and Switzerland. Residents are characterised by an overrepresentation of families and people with a high level of education, two population groups that are usually more motorised than average. Their motivations and long-term commitment to living car-free can be explained by not only practical reasons (e.g. availability of alternative modes) but also ecological awareness and social values (as shown by the importance of cooperative housing). This paper sheds light on these urban laboratories where the principles of a post-car system are implemented.
À l’instar de plusieurs pays occidentaux, la proportion de jeunes adultes titulaires d’un permis de conduire a diminué en Suisse (de plus de 70% en 2000 à moins de 60% en 2010). Cet article aborde ce phénomène en conceptualisant tout d’abord le permis de conduire comme un ensemble de règles, un droit de participer au système automobile et un rite de passage. La propension à obtenir le permis de conduire et son évolution sont ensuite analysées sur la base des Micro recensements mobilité et transports 2000 et 2010. Les résultats montrent que cette baisse s’explique en majeure partie par un report de l’âge d’obtention du permis et non par un renoncement définitif. Ce report semble moins dû à une complexification des règles ou à une augmentation des coûts mais davantage à un rapport plus fonctionnel et utilitaire à la voiture.
Cet article s’insère dans un double débat : celui de l’influence des formes urbaines sur les pratiques modales et celui relatif au regain d’attractivité des villes pour les classes moyennes supérieures. Il aborde les interactions entre mobilité quotidienne et mobilité résidentielle dans un nouveau quartier d’une ville de taille moyenne. Les choix résidentiels étudiés se basent en grande partie sur la valorisation de la proximité. Toutefois, plusieurs styles de mobilité coexistent au sein de ce même contexte territorial en fonction notamment des parts modales des transports publics et de l’automobile.
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