Louise Sträuli: in the field of transport, mobility and cities, intelligent approach would start from the human

What was the tipping point in choosing to pursue a PhD?

I have always had a passion for public transport and the diversity in and of public spaces. I used to work for a transport company and wrote my master thesis on markets as public spaces. It was just after I had finished that I heard about the PUTSPACE research project, which basically combined my two main interests, public spaces and public transport, into one research project. It was great luck and coincidence that I found out at the right time! I was inspired by the ideas and the description of the project to continue with my PhD.

Why was it important to study further the topics you focus on in your thesis?

There is a growing body of research that moves away from analysing transport in isolation to understanding mobility as a broader phenomenon than just getting from point A to B. There is still a lot to understand about how and why people move the way they do. It was important for me to explore the dimensions of what enables and hinders everyday mobility for people who rely on public transport. There is little research that has looked at such everyday experiences and embodied practices of everyday mobility and the different forms of marginalisation that can occur as a result of different fare policies. Therefore, it was a great opportunity to study the fare-free public transport in Tallinn and the different forms of fare evasion in Brussels. 

What strategies did you use to consistently work on your doctoral thesis and successfully reach completion?

I was very fortunate to be part of a research project that surrounded me with supportive and responsive supervisors, inspiring colleagues and another PhD student who became my friend and partner in crime. I found it difficult to establish a consistent working routine and maintain motivation to work on the thesis, especially during the long periods of isolation during the Covid-19 pandemic. However, regular check-ins with colleagues and supervisors helped me to stay focused and motivated. I had the opportunity to receive regular feedback and attend courses, summer schools and conferences that kept me inspired by the topic and other researchers. Ultimately, being embedded in a research project framework that allowed me to have regular interactions with colleagues, feedback sessions, enjoy the fun parts of academia and have a clear deadline for the end of project funding helped me to complete.

Can you share a memorable or funny instance that occurred while writing your thesis?

One of the things I enjoyed most about this PhD was that the topic I was researching was relatable to most peple. Very often, when asking about my PhD, people would tell me random stories they had heard or recently experienced on public transport. It was always very funny and memorable. For example, I couldn't believe it when someone told me that they saw people cutting their fingernails on the tram, until one day I saw it myself. All in all, I had spent a lot of time travelling by public transport in those five years and had a lot of memorable experiences.

Based on your field of research, what does "intelligent lifestyle" mean for you? 

This is a difficult question to answer as I have not encountered this concept in my field of research. I will therefore consider the two parts of the concept separately. There is a tendency in the field of transport, mobility and cities in general to try to make everything smarter. This is often done with technological tools and design fixes. The resulting collection and analysis of data almost allows human mobility and practices to be reduced to numbers, erasing the human and the experience of it. So I would rather argue that an intelligent approach would start from the human, recognising the diverse experiences of (im)mobility and the lived expertise of everyday transport users. Similarly, I prefer to focus on the systemic rather than the lifestyle. In mobility research, lifestyle would refer to mobility behaviour and individual choices, which in my understanding are often influenced by systemic issues of how the transport network is organised, how policies favour car travel, and the financial means necessary to choose certain mobility options. I find it much more important to understand how inequalities are shaped at a systemic level and then affect people's lifestyles.