Experience Spaces, (Aero)mobilities and Environmental Impacts

Abstract

This article investigates how aeromobility is used as a core element in the development of new urban strategies of experience and transformation of urban spaces. Two examples have been selected and studied: the municipalities of Billund (Denmark) and Nyköping (Sweden). It is argued that both examples are not just showing a simple form of causality, where increased access to air travelling creates a new experience destination. They also illustrate the complex impact of the increasing prevalence of air travel on the spatial, social and economic development of the cities, and at the same time, how the spatial, social and economic reorganization contributes to the prevalence of air traffic, airports and air spaces.

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Erik Jensen (Roskilde University) for valuable comments on this article.

Notes

The term “aeromobility” relates to process of air traffic as a parallel to automobility (Urry, 2000, p. 59). The term aeromobility is inspired by Høyer (2000, p. 193). Furthermore aeromobility refers in this article to both actual air trips of individual and their capacity to carry out air-based mobility (Kaufmann, 2002, p. 1). This means that to understand the production of air traffic one may not only study peoples actual movement, but also their potential to carry out different types of mobilities and in relation to this understand which mechanisms that transform/not transform potential mobility into actual mobility.