The politics of conflicting mobility policies in the Global South: A theoretical reviewABSTRACT
In recent decades, the paradigm of sustainable mobility has dominated urban transport studies, advocating for more sustainable forms of transportation and reduced reliance on cars. Within this framework, part of the literature has addressed the challenges regarding the popularity of car-restrictive policies, seeking ways to overcome resistance. However, only a few studies have explored the political dimension, recognizing potential opposition arising from distributive conflicts over public space and the benefits generated by such policies. This research gap is even more pronounced in the Global South, where examining the expansion of less ambitious but still contentious policies - for instance, bus and bike lanes widely implemented in cities such as São Paulo - is crucial. This article reviews the literature on the politics of contentious mobility policies, offering an innovative theoretical lens to analyze cases like São Paulo, with distributive conflict as the main analytical dimension.
Keywords:
sustainable mobility; Global South; urban mobility; contentious mobility; contentious politics