Contract researcher, postdoctoral fellow (M/F) : “uses for licence-free cars”

Job Description

Missions

Although licence-free cars have been on French roads for several decades, these vehicles have recently seen a resurgence in interest, particularly since the launch of Citroën's AMI in 2020 and other electric models. The recent boom in these vehicles calls for a better understanding of the challenges they pose in terms of traffic and their integration into the mobility system, particularly in terms of safety, coexistence with other road users, and user knowledge: their characteristics (age, mobility patterns, relationship to driving licences, etc.), their expectations, their feedback on vehicle use, etc.
As part of this project, the person recruited to the laboratory will be specifically responsible for the section concerning the use of licence-free cars, conducting in-depth fieldwork based mainly on qualitative research methods. Observations and interviews will be carried out with licence-free car owners/users.

Activity

The postdoctoral contract is part of the Smove project – Safety and mobility of licence-free cars, funded by the Road Safety Delegation and conducted in collaboration with Cerema. Road safety issues will be explored in particular by Cerema, while mobility issues (uses, users) will be addressed by LAET, with support from Cerema for conducting a national quantitative survey.
The successful candidate will be specifically responsible for conducting part of the qualitative fieldwork. Several fields were pre-identified during the project planning stage. - The main fieldwork will take place in the Aix Marseille Métropole area. In this area, the use of licence-free cars by high school students is regularly reported in the press. Furthermore, accident data shows that road safety for this type of vehicle is a major issue in the area, as the Bouches-du-Rhône department (along with the Rhône department) has the highest number of microcar accidents for the period 2019-2024.
- A secondary study will be conducted in the former mining basin of Douaisis, where the economic constraints of the population are likely to favour the presence of these vehicles.
- Finally, a third means of accessing users of these vehicles will be through a national questionnaire, which will enable contact to be made with people who own or use these vehicles. The aim of these studies, supported by the diversity of access channels, is to identify the diversity of licence-free car uses, in order to go beyond the media's view of the success of electric vehicles among young people.
The aim will be to understand the trajectories leading to the use of these vehicles in relation to the characteristics of the people concerned, but also to gain an in-depth understanding of the mobility practices associated with these vehicles.

Your Profil

Skills

The candidate must hold a PhD in social sciences (planning and urban development, geography, sociology, anthropology) and have between 3-5 years of experience.
Knowledge :
- knowledge in humanities and social sciences, particularly geography, planning, sociology and/or anthropology
- General knowledge in the field of mobility and/or rural and peri-urban dynamics, transitions
- Proficiency in English (minimum level B2)
- Possession of a category B driving licence (private vehicle) is essential
Expertise :
- Skills in qualitative research methods (observation, conducting interviews, analysis)
- writing skills
- Ability to synthesise and analyse
interpersonal skills :
- Rigour and organisational skills
- Autonomy and initiative
- Ability to work in a team
- adaptability
- Open to a wide range of disciplines

Your Work Environment

The selected candidate will be based at the Laboratoire Aménagement Economie Transports (LAET) in the Maison des Sciences Sociales et des Humanités Lyon St-Etienne (Lyon 7) and/or at the ENTPE (Vaulx-en-Velin). Travel to field sites is to be expected. The candidate will work as part of a team with the laboratory's researchers involved in the project, as well as with external partners, notably from Cerema, and in the various field survey locations.

Compensation and benefits

Compensation

Between €3071€ et €4258 gross per month, depending on experience

Annual leave and RTT

44 jours

Remote Working practice and compensation

Pratique et indemnisation du TT

Transport

Prise en charge à 75% du coût et forfait mobilité durable jusqu’à 300€

About the offer

About the CNRS

The CNRS is a major player in fundamental research on a global scale. The CNRS is the only French organization active in all scientific fields. Its unique position as a multi-specialist allows it to bring together different disciplines to address the most important challenges of the contemporary world, in connection with the actors of change.

CNRS

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