Cultural paradigm shifts in socio-technical transitions towards sustainable cities: A case study of the transportation system of São Paulo

Sammanfattning: Transportation is a key component of the urban realm due to its high fossil fuel consumption, GHG emissions and pollution generation (among other negative externalities) that have been aggravated by an individual motor vehicle-driven society. In order to achieve a balanced urban growth for the future, the transportation paradigm requires a complete shift that will depend upon a change on people’s behaviors and perceptions about mobility. Being the biggest, most populous city of Brazil and the western hemisphere, as well as the financial motor behind the country’s economy, São Paulo currently faces a very serious transportation problem: an extremely high car per capita ratio in conjunction with a deficient public transport network. Furthermore, socioeconomic disparities exert an additional pressure to this dilemma, limiting the access to mobility and deeply embedding the car from a cultural standpoint. Given its prominence, São Paulo is the ideal city to evaluate how specific cultural and socio- spatial niches can steer a cultural paradigm shift that could ultimately trigger a socio-technical transition towards sustainability. In this case study, the role of policies, technology, and infrastructure as policymaking instruments are analyzed in the context of urban spaces in emergent nations, where political and economic structures are strong social determinants. Moreover, this study has shown how these instruments could not only produce a new set of mobility practices (or a new transportation culture) but also the creation of an equitable and thriving urban environment.