Understanding Mobilities for Designing Contemporary Cities

The book focuses on spatial mobilities and explores the study of the topic as a key for understanding practices that both frame and generate contemporary everyday life in cities. At the same time, the book deals with the challenges raised, thanks to an interpretation of mobility as a socio-spatial phenomenon, both in social sciences and in urban studies as well as in reference to transport projects and urban policy. Thanks to the contribution of sociologists (Kesselring, Kaufmann, Nuvolati, Mattioli, Colleoni and Boffi), economists (Henckel and Thomaier), urban planners (Lanzani, Pasqui and Pucci), architects (Vendemmia and Longo), mathematician (Tagliolato) and geographer (Nadler, Manfredini), the book tries to understand how spatial mobilities bring about diversified uses of cities, different rhythms and life practices and unexpected and unplanned uses ad conflicts on urban spaces. The book is organised as four parts: Mobilities and the Transformations of Contemporary Cities; Mobility Practices, Policy and Project; Mobilities, Inequalities and Conflicts; Mapping Mobility Practices. The four parts lead us towards a broader understanding of mobilities in relation to the capacity of analysing, planning and designing contemporary cities. Many of the essays undertaken in the book show the results of practical experiences (research projects,surveys), with the intent of giving an operational content to the overall theoretical debate on the issue.