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The Rise of Automobility

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Weight of Modernity

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Abstract

The gradual evolution of car reliance is the subject of Chapter 7. It builds on a detailed social history of transport and cars in Melbourne undertaken by our former doctoral student, Sarah Hinde. Her material describes how influential the automobile industry was in that city, and how a combination of urban planning and industry assistance decisions shaped the ready acceptance of the car. The effect of the car in relation to changes in popularity of active transport, of modes of food provisioning and leisure are canvassed through the experience of the three generations. The older generation reflected rather negatively on today’s car dependence, with one saying “it’s sad really”. In contrast, for a majority of Baby Boomers and Gen Y, the car represents flexibility. Even when they had alternative modes of transport available, most of these post-war generations did not think they could get by without a car.

With major input from Sarah Hinde

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Center for Epidemiology & Population Health, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia

    Cathy Banwell, Dorothy Broom, Anna Davies & Jane Dixon

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  1. Cathy Banwell
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  2. Dorothy Broom
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  3. Anna Davies
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  4. Jane Dixon
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Banwell, C., Broom, D., Davies, A., Dixon, J. (2012). The Rise of Automobility. In: Weight of Modernity. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-8957-1_7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-8957-1_7

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-90-481-8956-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-90-481-8957-1

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