Mobility protests in the Netherlands of the 1970s: Activism, innovation, and transitions

Author(s)

Bruno, Matthew ^[1] ; Dekker, Henk-Jan ^[1] ; Lemos, Leticia Lindenberg ^[2]

Affiliation

^[1] Eindhoven Univ Technol, Dept Ind Engn & Innovat Sci, POB 513, NL-5600 MB Eindhoven - Netherlands

^[2] Univ Sao Paulo, Fac Architecture & Urbanism, R Lago 876, BR-05508080 Sao Paulo, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: ENVIRONMENTAL INNOVATION AND SOCIETAL TRANSITIONS; v. 40, p. 521-535, SEP 2021.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

With the Netherlands having the world's highest cycling rates, many see its current cycling policies as a model for the transition to sustainable transportation systems. Understanding these high cycling rates, however, requires understanding the geographic, historical, and institutional context in which social movements, working with government actors, helped stop a rapid decline in cycling rates between the 1950s and the 1970s in the Netherlands. This article uses historical sources and interviews with activists and government actors to show how social movements supported cycling by helping reverse the negative effects of rapid motorization. These social movements worked with government actors to implement three specific innovations: the woonerf, the bottleneck memorandum, and the car-restricted city center. This article contributes to transitions literature by looking beyond the relationship between enterprise and the state and demonstrating how social movements within a specific institutional context and with broad public support can advance sustainable transportation innovations. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 17/11198-7 - Cycling advocacy and the struggle for the urban space in São Paulo
• Grantee: Letícia Lindenberg Lemos
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate