Everyday ups and downs: experiences of vertical mobility in London
Lead Research Organisation:
University College London
Department Name: Geography
Abstract
The lift has dramatically altered mobility networks in the speed and distance that can be travelled
vertically; without the lift, there would not be the height, depth, and volume of buildings in today's urban
landscapes. Yet, research exploring vertical mobility is highly limited, which is attributable to an
overwhelming emphasis on horizontal mobility, and the widespread understanding of lifts and escalators
as only mundane infrastructures (Thill et al, 2011). This project will address this lack of research by
developing an interdisciplinary investigation of vertical mobility, drawing on the particular ways we use
and experience vertical transport in the everyday vertical spaces of London. From vertical mass housing,
to regeneration housing projects, office developments, hotels and spaces of consumption, London has
seen a shift in forms of verticality, as well as a dramatic increase in the number of high-rise buildings in
the city. Within this context, the research will highlight the socio-spatial particularities of verticalised
transport across different typologies by taking five vertical transects of the city: residential lifts (in social
housing blocks and "elite" private residential dwellings), office lifts, Heron Tower's glass lift, and building
maintenance gondolas, which vertically transport window cleaners of high-rise buildings. Through these
typologies, attention will be paid to ideas of interaction, disruption, and vulnerability, whilst more
fundamentally looking at how vertical space is navigated in particular contexts. The project's relevance
emerges from its commitment to looking at transport and mobility within the context of housing, work,
and the service/maintenance of particular aspects of architectural space. The proposed project will be
qualitatively based, incorporating ethnography/participant observation, interviews with lift users, and
interviews with professionals in the fields of architecture/engineering, alongside high-rise window
cleaners. In so doing, it will work across professional boundaries, thus creating knowledge exchange to
maximise economic and social impact.
vertically; without the lift, there would not be the height, depth, and volume of buildings in today's urban
landscapes. Yet, research exploring vertical mobility is highly limited, which is attributable to an
overwhelming emphasis on horizontal mobility, and the widespread understanding of lifts and escalators
as only mundane infrastructures (Thill et al, 2011). This project will address this lack of research by
developing an interdisciplinary investigation of vertical mobility, drawing on the particular ways we use
and experience vertical transport in the everyday vertical spaces of London. From vertical mass housing,
to regeneration housing projects, office developments, hotels and spaces of consumption, London has
seen a shift in forms of verticality, as well as a dramatic increase in the number of high-rise buildings in
the city. Within this context, the research will highlight the socio-spatial particularities of verticalised
transport across different typologies by taking five vertical transects of the city: residential lifts (in social
housing blocks and "elite" private residential dwellings), office lifts, Heron Tower's glass lift, and building
maintenance gondolas, which vertically transport window cleaners of high-rise buildings. Through these
typologies, attention will be paid to ideas of interaction, disruption, and vulnerability, whilst more
fundamentally looking at how vertical space is navigated in particular contexts. The project's relevance
emerges from its commitment to looking at transport and mobility within the context of housing, work,
and the service/maintenance of particular aspects of architectural space. The proposed project will be
qualitatively based, incorporating ethnography/participant observation, interviews with lift users, and
interviews with professionals in the fields of architecture/engineering, alongside high-rise window
cleaners. In so doing, it will work across professional boundaries, thus creating knowledge exchange to
maximise economic and social impact.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| Andrew Harris (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Isobel Pagendam (Student) |