The Geographies of Exclusion: Mobility, Infrastructure, and Structural Inequality in Global Urban Contexts

Mobility is not only a technical matter of infrastructure and logistics; it is also deeply embedded in the social fabric of cities. Patterns of mobility—who can move, how, when, and at what cost—are deeply political and often reproduce and reinforce existing inequalities. Although transport systems are typically framed as tools to facilitate access and improve urban quality of life, their planning and implementation frequently privilege certain groups while marginalizing others.

At a time when transitions to sustainable mobility are accelerating, new technologies and practices, such as information and communication technologies, emerging transport modes, digital platforms, and e-ticketing systems, are often exacerbating rather than reducing inequalities. Similarly, policy innovations that are not strictly technological, such as the “15-minute city” paradigm, may generate unintended drawbacks alongside their promises, particularly when applied without attention to diverse social realities.

This thematic issue seeks to explore the complex intersections between mobility and inequality from a global perspective. It will critically examine how mobility systems, whether through transport hardware (infrastructure, vehicles, digital platforms) or policy frameworks, shape everyday urban life and contribute to uneven distributions of accessibility and opportunity. Within this broader framework, the issue pays particular attention to the experiences of marginalized communities—including groups facing physical constraints (e.g., peripheral or poorly connected areas) as well as those affected by structural and intersectional inequalities related to class, gender, race, disability, or migration status. We are especially interested in how these communities negotiate, resist, or reimagine mobility in the face of exclusionary systems and structures.

By bringing together interdisciplinary perspectives that include urban planning, sociology, geography, political science, and environmental studies, this thematic issue aims to foster critical debates on the role of mobility in shaping equitable and inclusive cities. It seeks to provide both theoretical insights and policy-relevant knowledge to inform urban policy makers, planners, and community organizations. Ultimately, it aspires to connect scholars, practitioners, and communities across diverse geographies and experiences, creating a shared conversation on how mobility can become a force for social justice and collective well-being in urban contexts.

Authors interested in submitting a paper for this issue are asked to consult the journal's instructions for authors and submit their abstracts (maximum of 250 words, with a tentative title) through the abstracts system (here). When submitting their abstracts, authors are also asked to confirm that they are aware that Urban Planning is an open access journal with a publishing fee if the article is accepted for publication after peer-review (corresponding authors affiliated with our institutional members do not incur this fee).

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