The rapid growth in motorization is a palpable presence in cities around the world and is transforming streets into conduits for conveying automobiles. Against this context of an established automobility paradigm, we are a collective of scholars who critically investigate, using a range of methodological and disciplinary lenses, the interplay between roads, mobility and automobilization on a variety of fronts in Indian cities.

Considering the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the larger thrust towards decarbonisation, several solutionist initiatives that have been proposed around the world are finding their way to Indian shores to be implanted in cities there. Our research project seeks to assess several such efforts – be they metros, bus rapid transit, velo-pedi-mobilities – to grasp their potential to challenge automobility and usher in more just and equitable urban mobilities.

The focus of this research is primarily on the evolution of urban mobility in the Indian urban context. Following recent urban theorization, despite the large historical and social differences between the Indian urban case and Southern contexts, we are confident that our collective research will be of relevance to a wider audience of scholars, community activists, and civic actors interested in more sustainable and equitable modes of urban movement.

This research is funded thanks to an Insight Grant provided by the publicly funded Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Key researchers in this project are affiliated with Concordia University and McGill University in Canada and CEPT University in India.