Dynamic carpooling : A chance for a social equity in urban renovation areas?

In current societies, abilities to travel and to commute constitute a capital (Kaufmann, 2004). Mobility behaviors and especially modal choices are often obvious choices. Everyday routines avoid to query them daily (Verplanken, 1999). But people who move house have to compare several travel options.

In France, urban renovations policies often lead to destroy buildings and to rebuild new ones. That's why households who live in poorest areas of Tourcoing, North (where case study takes place) are required to rehouse. Our study aimed to understand deeply people's everyday mobility behaviors before relocation and changes after this ordeal in a qualitative point of view.

Owning a car in such a poor area means being normal. As most people need to apply for the driving license exam 3 or 4 times before passing it, car ownership sounds like a revenge on society. Then people often completely switch from public transports to cars even if they can't afford it.

Therefore informal carpooling doesn't look strange in such a context. It allows to face unexpected events (breakdowns) or to share/delay unexpected spending (fueling price, insurance fees) in order to keep a temporary job or to reach a store.

Our paper examine in which extend Dynamic Carpooling (forthcoming real-time means to match and share rides using GPS on smart-phones) could be useful for Tourcoing poor inhabitants (especially those who have to change their commuting habits due to relocation). If DC works theoretically (several experiments proved it) it currently fails to reach the critical mass number of users. Would it be relevant to lean on poor areas inhabitants (instead of rich ones according to top-down model of innovation scattering) to enhance DC? In which extend DC could both contribute to a healthy environment and reduce social inequality? Our paper will list positive and negative arguments.