Post‐socialist (auto)mobilities: Modernity, freedom and citizenship

Abstract

This paper investigates the intersection of post‐socialism and mobility to not only widen the scope of “new mobilities paradigm” into “off the map” regions but also to highlight new insights for research on mobility by challenging the assumed borders between past and present and between “East” and “West,” as well as those between different mobilities. This paper discusses post‐socialist mobilities via three topics—modernity, freedom and citizenship—which are evident in automobility and beyond. Modernity denotes a mobile “modern age,” with mobility referring to freedom to move—both of which are then tied to the ways in which individuals are governed as citizens. By analysing the constellations of different mobilities vis‐à‐vis shifting power relations between state and citizens, as they are raised in the emerging research on post‐socialist mobilities, the aim of the paper is to stress the many similarities in terms of practices and regulations of mobility across the often‐assumed boundaries between socialist, post‐socialist, and “western” conditions. While the starting point for the paper is changing patterns of automobility and its governing, the paper also makes references to other mobilities.

A Social Sciences and Humanities Research Agenda for Transport and Mobility in Europe: Key Themes and 100 Research Questions

“…the notion of a "transition" towards "sustainable" or "smart" mobility. For example, in the post-socialist countries of Europe, the meanings associated with these terms, and the extent to which a shift away from automobility represents a desired direction of societal development across politicians and the majority of local populations, may differ considerably (Tuvikene, 2018;Cavoli, 2021). Although our research agenda displays sensitivity to the need for context-specific and participation-intensive development of transition pathways (theme 2, 5), greater prominence of the priorities defined by scholars based in Central and Eastern Europe in future Horizon Scans would allow these questions to be articulated by CEE scholars themselves.…”

Decolonial approaches to urban transport geographies: Introduction to the special issue

“…Yet, despite a growing number of notable exceptions (Kwan and Schwanen, 2016;Lucas et al, 2018;Priya Uteng and Lucas, 2018;Schwanen, 2018aSchwanen, , 2018b, transport geographies have remained largely immune to decolonial thinking. The yet nascent links with urban studies suggest a potential for revising and revitalising transport geographies by bringing these together with other debates in the field of geography (Kębłowski et al, 2019a;Tuvikene, 2018;Wood, 2019Wood, , 2015. Importantly, this entails engaging with more explicitly (re-)politicised and critical perspectives into how and in whose interest transport policies and infrastructure are developed (Kębłowski and Bassens, 2018;Wood, 2015), and how they allow the capitalist ideology and accumulation regime to be set in motion on the urban scale (Enright, 2016).…”

Older people’s use of mobility aids in the built environment

“…The nature of human social relations is complex and occurs at various levels. Participation in events and activities, communities and citizenship are reliant on both movement and relationships (Bigonnesse, 2018;Gaete-Reyes, 2015;Green et al, 2014;Spinney et al, 2015;Tuvikene, 2018). Figure 10.1 shows a diagram of the intersection of relationships in the results of this research, indicating the overlapping nature of personal relationships, identity and infrastructure, the themes visited throughout.…”