Abstract

Urban infrastructures are known to determine the quality of a city, such as its justness and democratic approaches. They enable the flow of goods, people, and information. More importantly, thanks to them, people can develop a new, or different, understanding of their own environment and themselves, both thanks to their personal standpoints and encountering others. However, even though many scholars have recognized such a crucial role, a theoretical review of this theme and its broader implications seems to be missing.In this chapter, the author intends to fill this gap by drawing on Science and Technology Studies and the work of Langdon Winner. She will focus on pieces of research dealing with urban infrastructures and their relationship with cities, and on how this can influence the daily life of people. In doing so, she will present urban infrastructures according to what she calls ‘double dimension’: Material and immaterial. In this sense, one will be able to focus on the social implications created by these massive projects. Indeed, given their acknowledged role in influencing cities, it is necessary to consider how urban infrastructures can affect issues such as social integration, uneven development, and growing masculinity.This chapter has a twofold goal. First, it can make a contribution to academic research by providing a summary of what the field has said so far on the topic, which can help scholars identify new elements to advance in research. Second, it can present practical hints. Thanks to the presentation of pivotal aspects in the double dimension of urban infrastructures and how these can impact and be impacted by cities, one can develop better practices for these projects.