A ‘placeful’ station? The community role in place making and improving hedonic value at local railway stations
Document Type
Journal Article
Publication Date
2015
Subject Area
place - europe, mode - rail, infrastructure - station
Keywords
Railway stations, Community, Placelessness, Placefullness
Abstract
In recent years, railway stations have come to be seen as non-places within society, points of transit and nothing more. The role of the station in place making is disputed with stations seen as both creating and destroying a sense of place within a community. Our study is located within the railway stations of Scotland and explores how local communities have been empowered to reclaim, customise, and re-appropriate stations to simultaneously create a sense of place and better promote their community to the outside world. Drawing on ethnographic research we refute the notion that stations are somehow ‘placeless’. We show how through a process of legitimisation, a sense of ownership and appropriation of the station environment, communities are able to transform the station, improving hedonic value and recapturing a sense of place.
Rights
Permission to publish the abstract has been given by Elsevier, copyright remains with them.
Recommended Citation
Alexander, M., & Hamilton, K. (2015). A ‘placeful’ station? The community role in place making and improving hedonic value at local railway stations. Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Vol. 82, pp. 65–77.
Comments
Transportation Research Part A Home Page:
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/09658564