Digital Nexus of Post-Automobility
Report: Dennis, Urry (2007) ‘The Digital Nexus of Post-Automobility’, published by the Department of Sociology, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YL, UK,
Abstract
"Rapid dynamic changes in several key areas are transforming the physical geography of global regions as well as their interrelations. In this Report we set out a list of processes that we consider pose significant influence upon future mobilities, lifestyles, and social relations. We identify these as global climate change; global security and the ‘War on Terror’; digital technologies and pervasive computing; and the rise in complexity thinking. This Report demonstrates how their possible combination and synthesis could impact upon mobility trends within technologically developed regions, specifically upon automobilities. Taken individually they pose significant impact; taken together they have the momentum, power, and potential to create major shifts in how socio-technical mobilities are framed. By taking automobilities, and their transformation, as the focus we outline how we conceive a possible shift occurring that would take individualised automobility use from a series to a nexus system, particularly one framed within physical/digital networks. Principally we frame these dynamic systemic changes as shifting the car system from being autonomous to becoming post-car automation. This transition would take place within a parallel shift towards increased digitisation of physical movement whereby coded environments and software-sorting systems would frame such future mobilities."
Summary
"In this Report we specifically focus upon the ‘system’ of automobility. In particular, we frame automobility within a cluster of rapid dynamic changes in several key areas that are now transforming geo-physical relations, systems, and policies worldwide. Our central thesis is that these dynamic systemic changes may shift present car automobilities into a post-automobility system in a manner that will transform the car from autonomous to post-car automation.
In this Report the argument is set out in four chapters. Chapter One – Global Systems & Vulnerabilities – establishes the various influential processes and frames how they comprise dynamic and multiple shifts that may affect each other in a systemic manner. Chapter Two – Auto-Assemblages – examines the car system as a hybrid assemblage and outlines the principle processes that may produce a potentially new automobility assemblage, a post-car system. Chapter Three – A Digital Nexus – goes into more detail as to how we envision the ‘car’ assemblage shifting from a series to a nexus. This principally involves intelligent transport systems and related digital developments becoming embedded within networked infrastructures. Finally, Chapter Four – Post-Automobilities – engages with social implications and examines a range of social scenarios that may be necessary for a shift to a post-automobility ‘system’."
Excerpts
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Author contacts:
- Centre for Mobilities Research (CeMoRe), Lancaster University, Lancaster, LA1 4YL, UK - k.dennis1@lancaster.ac.uk
- Dept of Sociology, Lancaster University, Lancaster, LA1 4YL, UK, j.urry@lancaster.ac.uk