Overview
The massive adoption of cars in the developed world in the past 5 years, have fundamentally changed urban landscapes and millions of people’s way of life. In this short period, the automobile has evolved into a mean for private travels, sustained by a far-flung network of roads and highways designed for driving. Consequently, the “regime of automobility” dominates the current mobility system in Western countries (Geels & Kemp, 2012; Berger et al., 2014). Although the benefits of the private car for individuals and households in everyday mobility is recognised, most politicians, planners, and social scientists have acknowledged the backdrop of this development. The private car contributes to an over-consumption of oil-based fuel and energy, which makes it difficult to bring down the energy consumption and reduce CO2 emissions from the transport sector.
However, there is also increasing empirical indications that car-based personal mobility is lessening its share of urban travel (Kent et al 2013; Dennis & Urry 2010). Several scholars point out that car use and car ownership in many Western cities may have reached its peak and, that a new generation of travellers tends to prefer other modes than private cars (Berger et al., 2014; Kuhnimhof 2012; Line 2012; Millard-Ball & Schipper). The interest for alternative mobility arrangements may be enhanced by a new and general interest for shared or collaborative consumption in society, which refer to an economic model that emphasises “access” or “sharing” instead of ownership (Shaheen, et al 2012). The sharing economy has become more prevalent in recent years particularly due to online connectivity and the maturing of mobile technologies and software which has made car-sharing applications more widespread (Botsman & Rogers 2010).
This project will focus on this emerging transformation relying on innovation system theories, and a triangulation of different methodological approaches.
WP0. Management and communication.
This work package contain all activities related to the planning and coordination of the project, as well as dissemination of key results.
Task 1: Specification of the research framework and detailed plan
Task 2: Initiate coordination of work by organising project meetings, workshops and document sharing.
Task 3: Initiate dissemination of key results to stakeholders, the general public and relevant scientific communities.
WP1. Description and comparison of cases. The aim of this work package is to describe and compare all cases in the project. 1-3 niches will be studied in each of the four countries to get an overview of central differences and similarities. The case studies are ongoing car-sharing communities located within a city/nation and the analysis is done within the framework of transition theory as described above. The work in this WP represent an important baseline study for the work in the forthcoming WPs. T
ask 1: Developing research tools and framework for case description
Task2: Case studies of shared consumption mobility services based on document analysis and interviews with managers and employees in all countries/cities.
Task 3. Development of national write-ups
Task 4: Preparing an international cross-case analysis
WP2. In-depth studies of households. WP2 will conduct in-depth studies of households related to the cases. Analytical frameworks and concepts from social practice theories are used to guide the studies. Qualitative studies is conducted with households situated in geographical closeness to the cases described in WP2, and both existing and potential users will be included, as well as household involving families in different life-stages and family constellations. The studies will involve 12-15 households in each country. The outcome of the work is a closer understanding of key factors within households that influence on the future uptake of shared mobility services. The results will also be used to develop hypotheses that will be further examined in WP4 and WP5. Task 1: Development of research tools and templates
Task 2: Selection of households - sharers & non-sharers
Task 3: Fieldwork with write-ups
Task 4: Cross case analysis
WP3. Household survey. In this work package, a household-survey will be conducted among a sample of potential users in 2-4 selected urban regions in Norway. The survey will be used to test hypotheses related to the uptake of shared mobility resources in households. The results will be a model that estimates the strength and interplay of key factors in the adoption process, as well as the possibilities for behaviour change across different household segments.
Task 1: Development of survey tool
Task 2: Distribution of survey to household sample
Task 3: Analysis of results
WP4. Workshops with stakeholders and developers. In this work package, we will conduct a series of workshops with stakeholders in each of the four countries. In addition to policymakers on local and national levels, we will involve business developers, technical experts and social researchers. The results from the WP will be used as a key input to the subsequent Delphistudy.
Task 1: Development of research tools and templates
Task 2: Selection of workshop participants
Task 3: Organizing stakeholder workshops
Task 4: Analysing results from the workshops.
WP5. Assessment of future uptake of shared consumption of mobility services. The work in this project will provide an overview of the potential future uptake of shared mobility services in four countries, by the development and use of a quantitative Delphi study. Through a systematic communication process within a panel of experts, 1-3 scenarios will be elaborated. The scenario results is used to make estimations for the potential energy savings and reduction in greenhouse gasses (GHG) for each participating country.
Task 1: Development of a tool for a web-based Delphi study
Task 2: Distribution of survey to an international expert panel
Task 3: Estimation of potential reduction in energy and GHG emissions
WP6. Conclusions & recommendations. Finally, all results will be integrated and overall conclusions drawn. The final report will document all results and will a list of as recommendations to policymakers related to the future use of shared mobility resources.
Task 1: Final report integrating all key results
Task 2: Seminar addressing key findings.