Automotive Production and Its Relationship with the Built Environment

Abstract

This chapter draws attention to the complex relationship between the restructuring of the automotive industry and the physical restructuring of the built environment that occurs at multiple scales. We examine the relationship between automotive manufacturing, which has dispersed across the world in the last few decades, and the once-thriving industrial belts now in decline, so-called rustbelts dotted with “shrinking cities.” We then scale down, focusing on the evolving form of the factory itself. We describe the challenges that local governments face in managing the consequences of shuttered plants, particularly in weak markets. This chapter highlights the need for rigorous research on decommissioned auto plants, which have a profound influence on a place even as they lie empty.