Gas industry and urban modernisation: Lisbon in the 19th and 20th centuries

• Autores: Ana Cardoso de Matos
• Localización: Tst: Transportes, Servicios y telecomunicaciones, ISSN 1578-5777, Nº. 16, 2009, págs. 62-80
• Idioma: español
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• Dialnet Métricas: 3 Citas
• Resumen

  • The modernization of the cities that took place from the middle of the nineteenth century can be placed in the process of globalization that favoured the movement of goods, capital and labour, and created new opportunities for companies linked to urban infrastructures, specifically gas, to invest in other countries. From the second half of the nineteenth century, foreign investment in Portugal was crucial for the implementation of modern urban infrastructures in Portuguese cities. This investment was accompanied by new technical and administrative procedures and by technology transfers. This technology transfer was also helped by technical training abroad, and by study visits of engineers and industrialists to other cities and to universal and international exhibitions. Furthermore, the increased integration of cities, especially port cities, in the international economy and in the circulation of people was crucial for the modernization of urban infrastructures, so that they responded to the new patterns of public health, hygiene, comfort and welfare of urban populations. This paper aims to analyze the development of gas networks in Lisbon, taking into account some of the aspects listed above, and the evolution of gas consumption in this city.