Understanding the intertwined influence of the built and the social environments on children’s unaccompanied trips

Existing research has acknowledged the influence of the street environment on children’s mobility. However, the literature has given little attention to how the physical aspects of the streets, the people present in the public space, and the interactions between both factors can alter perceptions, experiences and, collectively, discourage unaccompanied trips. Furthermore, children’s views on these issues are often neglected in the literature; even more so in Latin American academic research. This thesis seeks to redress this gap by exploring and quantifying the relationships between these variables from the perspectives of children and young people (6 to 16 years old) living in London (UK) and Santiago (Chile); two capital cities of high-income countries that feature high levels of urban inequality. It contributes to the literature about the influence of the built environment and the social sphere on children and young people’s unaccompanied trips by (i) employing novel methods to gather data and built knowledge, (ii) exploring settings that, so far, have received little attention and (iii) suggesting several policy implications. This thesis presents the findings of a sequential study that blends qualitative and quantitative methods. In the first stage, children and young people were invited to talk about the social and physical attributes that are relevant for their travelling (face-to-face semi-structured interviews). While in the second stage, children and young people were asked to formally evaluate attributes of the built and social environments (using rating scales and ranking exercises) and to choose between pairs of streets on the basis of suitability for travelling alone (using stated preferences methods). In both stages, carers were also invited to participate. A comprehensive analysis of the data indicates the attributes that encourage unaccompanied trips are linked to joyful public spaces and “nice” people, like well-kept footpaths, greenery and playgrounds. In London, crowded footpaths and the presence of teenagers in the public space discourage such trips, as these reduce the space to manoeuvre and are related to antisocial behaviour. In Santiago, the presence of strangers drinking alcohol or men on the streets increases fears and makes children’s unaccompanied trips problematic. Additionally, girls tend to have more concerns than boys. The findings also suggest that younger children’s perceptions differ considerably from those of carers, reporting more positive views towards a range of features in the environment and the people inhabiting the public spaces. While young people’s perspectives tend to converge with the attitudes and beliefs of carers

Movilidad femenina en Santiago de Chile: reproducción de inequidades en la metrópolis, el barrio y el espacio público

La construcción social que asocia a las mujeres con la mantención y cuidado del hogar las muestra como un grupo con baja disponibilidad de tiempo y con limitadas capacidades de desplazamiento urbano. La limitación se traduce en una movilidad diferenciada, acotada y vulnerable a fenómenos tan diversos como su lugar de residencia y la calidad del espacio público. En el caso de Santiago de Chile, existen diferencias considerables en la movilidad según género, edad y estrato socioeconómico, destacándose una mayor fragilidad en grupos de escasos recursos que habitan en barrios producidos por el Estado durante la segunda mitad del siglo pasado. Mediante indicadores cuantitativos y herramientas cualitativas, el presente texto tiene por propósito caracterizar la movilidad femenina en Santiago en tres escalas: metropolitana, barrial y local. La evidencia muestra que existen disparidades en los todos los niveles. En la escala metropolitana las mujeres de ingresos altos exhiben un elevado número de viajes, mayoritariamente motorizados, mientras que en los grupos de escasos recursos dominan los desplazamientos pedestres. En una escala menor, en los barrios, los traslados peatonales se encuentran fuertemente afectados por factores sociales y ambientales como, por ejemplo, la percepción de seguridad

Bus drivers and their interactions with cyclists: An analysis of minor conflicts

Driving a bus in a city is a challenging task as it demands paying attention to changing conditions (e.g., weather, congestion) while interacting with passengers and other road users who sometimes display unpredictable behaviours. Cyclists play an important role in these interactions. This paper investigates how cyclists are perceived by bus drivers and how conflicts arising from their daily interactions shape the attitudes of bus drivers. A total of 639 bus drivers (4% of the workforce, 91% males) working in Santiago de Chile responded an online survey. The survey asked drivers about their perception of other transport modes, their experience with traffic collisions and the conflicts they have had with cyclists. Later, logistic regression models were estimated, using “coexistence with cyclists” as the dependent variable. The findings show that younger and older drivers have a better perception of cyclists compared to middle-aged ones. Negative experiences with cyclists worsen the perception of co-existence with cyclists; meanwhile, previous cycling experience was unrelated to drivers’ perceptions. The results also suggest that existing norms are perceived as ineffective. Finally, gender was not statistically significant in shaping bus drivers’ perception of cyclists, yet this topic requires further attention as the composition of the public transport labour force is changing