Sociospatial inclusiveness of streets through the lens of urban pedestrian mobilities: Go-along interviews with less mobile pedestrians in Singapore

The increasing emphasis on vulnerable pedestrians and on the social aspects of active mobility, such as walking, has raised the profile of mobile methods for investigating mobilities in densely built environments. This paper examines the everyday mobility practices and perceptions of less mobile pedestrians, i.e., older adults and people with disabilities (PWDs), through mobile ethnographic interviewing. In total, 26 older adults and 7 PWDs were recruited for go-along interviews in localities familiar to them in Singapore. These semi-structured go-alongs generated a wealth of qualitative data covering topics ranging from their travel patterns to their perceptions of the built environment and their attitudes towards space sharing. Interview transcripts, field notes and video footage enabled an in-depth analysis of both the verbal and nonverbal aspects of the active mobility behaviour. The analysis revealed emerging sociospatial themes, including movement within an extended pedestrian network, such as detouring and taking shortcuts, and ambivalence towards space sharing caused in part by unclear rights-of-way among active transport modes and preconceptions of social norms. These themes have implications for how to shape travel behaviour based on a more inclusive approach to urban planning and neighbourhood design that instils a deeper humanistic understanding.