ABSTRACT

This chapter explores a range of social cracks and shows some of those that are important in order to transform strangers or Mobile Others into Mobile Acquaintances, Mobile Withs, and Mobile Friends. By allowing for an increase in the intensity of the social relation, the social cracks help improve the experience of the commute and facilitate deep meetings amongst commuters who otherwise live diverse and relatively segregated lives. By focusing on these social possibilities of the growing networked urban mobilities, this chapter shows the ways in which trains can become an important place for forming and sustaining various types of social relations.