Speed and blood on the bypass: the new automobilities of inter-war London

Abstract

The article considers the impact of new arterial roads on the mobilities of the wealthier inter-war Londoner, and argues that they occasioned an emergent form of automobility that was modern, sensational and exciting for the metropolitan driver, but was also highly dangerous, particularly for pedestrians and cyclists living in suburban homes near these roads.

The missing mobility: friction and freedom in the movement and digitization of cargo

“…The normalization of the motorcar in the inter-war period in the twentieth century reveals how this state of affairs played out historically as the fast, sensational, exciting and dangerous elite pioneers made way for middle-class business and pleasure motoring (Law 2012). The freedom the automobile gave to wealthy libertines who could afford them ensured its august and practical heyday as a dominant transport option sanctioned by those with influence over infrastructure and urban design.…”