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Car and the city: Socio-technical pathways to 2030

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Abstract

A socio-technical approach is used to show that the future of urban mobility will depend on the competition between coalitions of innovative actors who support alternative transport systems. The current positioning of these coalitions is mapped with reference to innovation and power. The supporting coalition of the 'individual car' system benefits from a dominant position on current alternatives, but faces external pressures for change. Three transition pathways to 2030 are considered - 1) 'AUTO-city', i.e. the reconfiguration of the 'individual car' supporting coalition through the stable integration of producers of batteries; 2) 'ECO-city', i.e. the empowering of local coalitions which integrate all non-car modes, and their diffusion from pioneering to laggard cities; 3) 'ELECTRI-city', i.e. the empowering of a new coalition centered on electric operators which establish a new 'electric vehicles + smart grids' system. The deployment of one or another transition pathway also depends on the ability of supporting coalitions to influence political institutions. Without a political action for the weakening of the dominant position of the 'individual car' system, the 'AUTO-city' transition pathway will prevail. To support the 'ECO-city' and the 'ELECTRI-city' transition pathways, a multilevel transport policy or a national/federal industrial policy is needed, respectively.

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  • G. Marletto, 2013. "Car and the city: Socio-technical pathways to 2030," Working Paper CRENoS 201306, Centre for North South Economic Research, University of Cagliari and Sassari, Sardinia.
    • Handle: RePEc:cns:cnscwp:201306
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    Cited by:

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    3. Auvinen, Heidi & Ruutu, Sampsa & Tuominen, Anu & Ahlqvist, Toni & Oksanen, Juha, 2015. "Process supporting strategic decision-making in systemic transitions," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 97-114.
    4. Marletto, Gerardo & Ortolan, Chiara, 2017. "Testing the integration of political discourses into the socio-technical map of urban mobility," Working Papers 17_2, SIET Società Italiana di Economia dei Trasporti e della Logistica.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    urban mobility; socio-technical analysis; socio-technical transition; innovative actor; supporting coalition;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure
    • L14 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Transactional Relationships; Contracts and Reputation
    • Q55 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environmental Economics: Technological Innovation
    • R40 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Transportation Economics - - - General

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