Worker Mobility and Urban Policy in Latin America: Policy Interactions and Urban Outcomes in Mexico City

This book argues that urban outcomes are better understood through the interactions between policies from different domains, such as transportation, housing, and labor markets. It applies the Policy Interactions Framework to study the mobility experience of workers in Greater Mexico City and finds that the choiceless mobility hypothesis explains how the spatial location of demand, housing pathways, and public transport politics interact to create low accessibility to jobs. The book is intended for scholars and practitioners in urban policy analysis, urban development, and urban political economy in the Global South.

Format: Hardback
Length: 134 pages
Publication date: 24 October 2022
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

This book makes a compelling case that urban outcomes are best understood as the product of the complex interplay between policies from various policy domains rather than being solely attributable to any one policy silo. By employing the Policy Interactions Framework, the author delves into the study of workers' mobility experiences in Greater Mexico City, offering a comprehensive perspective on how urban policies can sometimes work against each other to create unequal urban outcomes.

Four empirical studies are presented to provide a thorough examination of how urban policies can interact in unintended ways, leading to inequitable urban outcomes. The chapters analyze various aspects of the commute, such as time and distance, to quantify and map commuting inequalities. They also assess the shift in the spatial location of labor demand between 1999 and 2019, examine the default housing pathways available to workers, and evaluate the spatial distribution of public and common mobility resources.

One significant outcome of applying the Policy Interactions Framework to the study of workers' mobility is the introduction of the choiceless mobility hypothesis. This hypothesis suggests that the interplay between the spatial location of labor demand, the housing options available to workers, and the political economy of public transport leads to the creation of geographies of low accessibility to jobs.

The target audience of this book includes scholars and practitioners in the fields of urban policy analysis, urban development, and urban political economy in the Global South. The book offers valuable insights into the complex dynamics of urban policymaking and provides practical examples of how policies can interact to produce unintended consequences. By highlighting the importance of considering multiple policy domains and their interactions, this book contributes to the ongoing debate about urban sustainability and equity.

Weight: 430g
Dimension: 234 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781032199702