For most people in the developed world, the ability to travel freely on a daily basis is almost taken for granted. Although there is a large volume of literature on contemporary mobility and associated transport problems, there are no comprehensive studies of the ways in which these trends have changed over time. This book provides a detailed empirical analysis of mobility change in Britain over the twentieth century. Beginning with an explanatory theoretical overview, setting the UK case studies within an international context, the book then analyses changes in the journey to school, the journey to work, and travelling for pleasure. It also looks at the ways in which changes in mobility have interacted with changes in the family life cycle and assesses the impact of new transport technologies on everyday mobility. It concludes by examining the implications of past mobility change for contemporary transport policy.

Colin Pooley is Professor of Social and Historical Geography, at Lancaster University, UK. Jean Turnbull is Centre Administrator for the Centre for North West Regional Studies, Lancaster University, UK. Mags Adams is Research Fellow in the Acoustics Research Centre, at the University of Salford, UK.

Contents: The significance of travel and mobility; Mobility and society; Reconstructing mobilities; Changes in everyday mobility: an overview; Travelling to school; Travelling to work; Travel for leisure and pleasure: children playing and hanging around; Travel for leisure and pleasure: entertainment, sport, shopping and holidays; Mobility, family and the life course; Transport policies, technologies and the experience of everyday mobility; The lessons of history: mobility change and contemporary transport policy; Bibliography; Index.