Exploring Households’ Energy Vulnerability in Housing and Transportation – Residential and Daily Mobility in South-Western France

This article offers an analytical framework for a better understanding of household energy vulnerability in both housing and transportation. It starts from the hypothesis that all forms of energy and fuel poverty – in the Global North – are encompassed within a broader housing crisis. While recent research has focused on the geography of all forms of energy and fuel poverty, links with housing affordability issues have received less attention. This is despite housing accounting for a higher proportion of household expenditure. Focusing on a case study in South-Western France, this article analyses the determinants of the geographical distribution of domestic energy poverty (DEP) and transport energy poverty (TEP), while considering housing costs. A questionnaire survey – sent to households who moved during the 2021 – 2023 energy crisis – is explored, using two composite DEP and TEP indicators. Firstly, we identify seven residential sub-markets with higher or lower housing valuation, using a hierarchical clustering analysis and principal component analysis. Secondly, we study the likelihood of being in DEP, TEP or double energy vulnerability (DEV) according to each spatial context that has been identified, using logistic regressions. Our results illustrate that DEP may be a more residual phenomenon affecting the very poor. While TEP is more spatially selective, typically concentrating in municipalities in lower valuation, it may be an entry point to DEV for the most vulnerable households. We discuss our findings considering the role that life cycle and wealth accumulation (through homeownership) play in exacerbating households’ energy hardship differences within a same spatial context. Results also show that social housing plays in mitigating the exposure to energy vulnerability.