Urban transport system changes in the UK: In danger of populism?

Many cities seek to change their transport systems to reduce negative outcomes. This generally involves measures supporting active and public transport, restricting vehicle use. Infrastructure modification and legislative developments are often perceived as ‘attacks’, and lead to resistance by speci...

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Detalhes bibliográficos
Autores: Gössling, Stefan, Schweiggart, Nadja, Nieuwenhuijsen, Mark J., McEachan, Rosemary R.C., Khreis, Haneen
Formato: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2024
País:España
Recursos:Universitat Pompeu Fabra
Repositorio:Repositorio Digital de la UPF
OAI Identifier:oai:repositori.upf.edu:10230/68706
Acesso em linha:http://hdl.handle.net/10230/68706
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2024.105273
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palavra-chave:Air pollution
Clean Air Zones
Discourse analysis
Low traffic neighbourhood
Populism
Ultra-low emission zones
Descrição
Resumo:Many cities seek to change their transport systems to reduce negative outcomes. This generally involves measures supporting active and public transport, restricting vehicle use. Infrastructure modification and legislative developments are often perceived as ‘attacks’, and lead to resistance by specific groups. This paper uses critical discourse analysis to evaluate a convenience sample of 185 social media threads opposing Ultra-Low Emission Zones (ULEZ), Clean Air Zones (CAZ), and Low Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTN) in four cities in the UK, Oxford, London, Birmingham, and Bradford. Themes are identified through MaxQDA to determine the range of discursive strategies used, as well as to understand their interrelationships. Findings highlight intersections of populist politics and (sustainable) transport policymaking and planning in UK cities. The understanding of the mechanisms at work can facilitate the development of less divisive strategies for transforming urban transport systems.