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Driving Spaces
A Cultural-Historical Geography of England's M1 Motorway
"This is a terrific analysis of the making of a mobile landscape. It does an excellent job of deciphering the multiple lineaments of fast, smooth motorized passages of, in this case, the making of the UK’s iconic M1." "The M1 has been with us for long enough for us to take it for granted and proceed (along it) as if it had always been there. Consequently it was ripe for just this kind of cultural historical study that reminds us it was once shockingly new, a less than certain enterprise and, ultimately, an astounding (and still evolving) construction in soil, concrete and guttering."
–John Urry, University of Lancaster
–Eric Laurier, University of Edinburgh
Peter Merriman (Author)
9781405130721, Wiley
Paperback / softback, published 25 September 2007
320 pages
23 x 15.2 x 1.8 cm, 0.463 kg
"While I wish that he had synthesized his research in a strong conclusion, this criticism should not diminish the merits of the book. The empirical results and the study's framework deserve a firm place in the history of technology." (Technology & Culture, 1 January 2011) "Merriman’s systematic, detailed and precisely documented description of the cultural context of the M1 will itself stand as a valuable documentary resource for researchers and students alike" (Area, December 2008) "Thoroughly researched and full of rich … Driving Spaces presents the historical trajectory of the M1 Motorway through a series of cultural and political stages." (Journal of British Studies, October 2008) “Merriman provides a fascinating perspective on the social and cultural aspects of driving and highways … in this multidisciplinary study. Includes … numerous references … .Recommended.” (Choice)
Peter Merriman traces the social and cultural histories and geographies of driving spaces through an examination of the design, construction and use of England’s M1 motorway in the 1950s and 1960s.
List of Figures ix Series Editors’ Preface xii Acknowledgements xiii 1 Introduction: Driving Spaces 1 Mobilities 4 Driving, Space, Social Relations 6 Driving, Landscape, Visuality 12 Geographies of the Modern Road 16 Contents of the Book 20 2 Envisioning British Motorways 23 Motoring and the Motor-Car Way, 1896–1930 24 The German Autobahnen: The Politics and Aesthetics of a Nation’s Roads 31 Motorways for Britain? National Plans, National Defence 38 Motorways, War and Reconstruction 43 Motorways and the British Landscape 46 3 Designing and Landscaping the M1 60 Legislating and Campaigning: Towards a National Motorway Network 61 Locating the M1: Regional Planning, Local Protests and the Authority of the Engineer 67 Landscape Architecture and the Post-war, Modern Road 73 ‘A New Look at the English Landscape’: Landscape Architecture, Movement and the Aesthetics of a Modern Motorway 83 Towards a Road Style: Service Areas in the Landscape 90 ‘Cutting Holes in the Landscape’: Britain’s Motorway Signs 97 4 Constructing the M1 103 ‘Operation Motorway’: Constructing the M1 Motorway 104 5 Driving, Consuming and Governing the M 1 141 Motorway Driving, Embodiment, Competence 143 ‘Motorway Madness’: Driving, Governing, Expertise 152 Motorway Modern: Consuming the M 1 162 Motorway Service Areas and the Motorist-Consumer 178 Assessing the M1’s Performance: Cost-Benefit Analysis, Scientific Experiments, Accidents 186 6 Motorways and Driving since the 1960s 200 The ‘M1 Corridor’ 202 Motorways and ‘the Environment’ 204 Dystopian and Marginal Landscapes? 208 Placeless Environments? 210 Placing the M1 in the Late Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries 213 Appendix: Archival Sources 219
Song of a Road: Folk Song, Working-Class Culture and the Labour of a Motorway 124
Notes 224
References 246
Index 285
Subject Areas: Geography [RG]
