Intensities of mobility: Kinetic energy, commotion, and qualities of supercommuting

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Issue Date
2016
Authors
Bissell, David
Vannini, Phillip
Jensen, Ole B.
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Subject
Commuting
Travel
Abstract
This paper explores the intensities of long distance commuting journeys in order to understand how bodily sensibilities become attuned to the regular mobilities which they undertake. More people these days are travelling farther to and from work than ever before, owing to a variety of factors which relate to complex social and geographical dynamics of transport, housing, lifestyle, and employment. Yet, the experiential dimensions of long distance commuting have not received the attention that they deserve within research on mobilities. Drawing from fieldwork conducted in Australia, Canada, and Denmark this paper aims to further develop our collective understanding of the experiential particulars of long distance workers or supercommuters. Rather than focusing on the extensive dimensions of mobilities that are implicated in broad social patterns and trends, our paper turns to the intensive dimensions of this experience for supercommuters by developing an understanding of embodied kinetic energy, commotion and quality. Exploring how experiences of long-distance workers are constituted by a range of different material and bodily forces enables us to more sensitively consider the practical, technical, and affective implications of this increasingly prevalent yet underexplored travel practice.
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The definitive version of record is available at https://doi.org/10.1080/17450101.2016.1243935
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