Sustainable Mobility, yes; Inclusive Too?

By Adrià Serarols, energy technician at Ecoserveis

Within the necessary energy transition, mobility is undoubtedly a key sector that is already taking steps towards decarbonization . There is often talk not only of changing conventional vehicles to electric ones, but also of social changes regarding the different methods of transport, encouraging the use of public transport, trains and shared vehicles.

But, having said that, are we moving in the right direction? Does the change we are experiencing solve the different social gaps that we carry over from the previous model? Does it maintain them? Or might it even exacerbate them?

In order for climate change to take into account all groups, it is necessary to review the different uses that are made of the various transport methods , as well as the needs that drive these uses. From this analysis emerges what is beginning to be called “Transport Poverty”. But what does it mean?

There is no clear and established definition of transport poverty, although the terminology used refers to the unaffordability of transport, inaccessibility, the impossibility of accessing certain economic/social activities due to the lack of transport options and exposure to its externalities such as pollution (Alonso-Epelde, E. et al, 2023). The Observatory for Energy Transition and Climate Action (OTEA) recently carried out a study (2023) that aims to conceptualise transport poverty and propose a preliminary definition of indicators to represent vulnerable users . To achieve this, the study used microdata from the Household Budget Survey of the National Institute of Statistics (INE) of Spain to carry out a comprehensive analysis of transport poverty in various socio-demographic groups. The study results provide a deep understanding of the nature of transport poverty and the impact on vulnerable populations, which can inform policy interventions and initiatives aimed at addressing this critical issue.

According to academics, women are more affected by transport poverty, transport access and mobility problems than men, as they have less access to transport options and transport design is highly masculinised and therefore does not meet women’s needs (Ilárraz, 2006, Vilagran, 2014). The mobility challenges women face in their daily lives and the way in which deficiencies in public transport contribute to the social exclusion of this group are linked to social norms. Because of these norms, women generally bear the burden of caregiving and domestic tasks (Guasch, 1998; Tobio, 2000).

In recent years, different media have promoted the need to delve deeper into exclusion and social vulnerability, especially in the urban context and mainly linked to mobility and the feminization of poverty and gender inequality in mobility patterns (Soldevila, 2018; Ortiz Escalante, 2019).

In this sense, there is also academic research that has focused on patterns of social exclusion in transport policies, urban planning and housing from a gender perspective (de Madariaga & Novella-Abril, 2022). Understanding gender-differentiated travel patterns is crucial for designing inclusive transport systems that effectively meet the needs of different user groups. This is why some academics have begun to discuss the “mobilities of care activities” with the aim of making visible the need to assess and identify how care activities shape travel patterns (de Madariaga & Zucchini, 2019).

According to Sara Ortiz, from Col·lectiu Punt 6, it is vitally important to think about the mobility model we want, a model focused on proximity, which takes into account the needs of different people . The lack of a social perspective is due to the fact that most civil servants and those responsible in the field of mobility of public policies are white men, around 50 years old, with a high socioeconomic level and a technical academic training, so we do not have an expanded, comprehensive and inclusive perception of reality.

On the other hand, a very important indicator should be immobility, that is, people who for some reason decide not to move, and asking why is very relevant . When you decide not to leave the house, it may be because there is someone or something that prevents you from doing so. It may be because you simply do not need to move or maybe you cannot move? Or could it be due to a feeling of insecurity?

In short, collecting the necessary data in an appropriate manner (separating users by gender, age, etc.) can give us valuable information about the different mobility patterns that distinguish the various groups of people. This not only allows us to detect areas and groups that suffer from transport poverty, but is key to fully addressing how the sector is transforming, and at the same time it is an opportunity to make innovative urban planning, which encourages changing our way of understanding how we move, based on the needs of everyone, and doing so in a sustainable way.

At Ecoserveis we address transport poverty from different perspectives, we promote specific projects such as Fair Mobility, where we work on how inequalities in mobility affect the most vulnerable groups and territories in the city of Barcelona to promote more sustainable mobility alternatives among them. We have also been working to contribute to the debate on a future European definition of transport poverty that will allow the design of transport policies that promote a dignified life for all people, regardless of gender, socioeconomic, demographic or geographical context. And we also work in a network on this issue through the Transport Inequalities Group promoted by ECODES.

* Text translated into Catalan by Anna Miralta Solé.

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