Challenging the “norm” to create more inclusive and accessible transport for women

An overview

Note: We recognise that gender is diverse and multifaceted, and a spectrum of identities exists other than or in between “male” and “female.” While our current understanding may emphasise these binary distinctions due to current available data and literature, we remain aware of the broader spectrum. Further, we note that gender roles continue to evolve, and it is imperative to differentiate between studying gender differences and perpetuating harmful stereotypes (that is, making assumptions about differences between men and women in a way that is inaccurate, limiting, or harmful to one or both sexes).

Introduction

People typically assume that transport is gender-neutral and that infrastructure is built to benefit everybody equally. However, in 2014 the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women found a male bias in the planning, provision and design of transport systems[1]. Women have different needs for transport, but historically these have been poorly understood and are less likely to be met through current public transport planning. As a result, women can become excluded from public services (e.g. education, employment, healthcare etc.) or forced to become car-dependent. We need public transport to ensure equal access to amenities and opportunities (and simultaneously reduce our transport emissions), to encourage active travel and use of public transport. Yet, we cannot encourage people to use a system that does not meet their needs.

Travel habits are established and socialised from an early age. For some, learning to drive and getting a car is a coming-of-age moment, while for others using public transport allows them to be independent. However, travel time becomes increasingly significant as individuals balance job requirements, household tasks, and childcare, which disproportionately affects women. Women are more likely to face inequalities in economic resources and free time as they strive to manage job responsibilities alongside household labour and caregiving duties. This has an impact on mobility and access to opportunities.

Public transport and active travel can support independence and mobility, however, unreliability of services or the trip-chaining often required to meet the many demands placed on women can make these options difficult or unviable. They can also be unsuitable for children due to safety concerns. For many women who still use public transport or active travel to commute, having a car remains a perceived ‘necessity’ for other tasks and spontaneous emergencies. Therefore car-dependence stems from the perceived unsuitability of alternative transport options.

Gender and the transport experience

There are four main aspects that influence women’s mobility: access, convenience and comfort, reliability, and safety.

Access

Access to transport refers to the physical accessibility. This includes gaps between the platform and vehicle, steps and narrow turnstiles; the quality of roads, paths and cycling infrastructure leading to and from transport facilities; parking infrastructure available for all modes of transport; the location of passenger information, ticket machines and customer service staff; and transport affordability.

Women still perform the majority of unpaid care. In England in 2023, 25.7% of working age women between the age of 16 and 64 are economically inactive due to looking after their family or home, compared to 7.1% of men[2]. The journeys prompted by these responsibilities, referred to as ‘mobility of care’ are characterised by stress, multiple interchanges, and access difficulties. Consequently, women spend more money on transport, as ticketing and fare structures are often not designed for trip chaining of this nature.

Convenience and comfort

Convenience and comfort is the ‘absence of effort’ in using transport services that are ‘fit for purpose’. Factors include waiting times, crowding, ease of finding a seat, availability of toilets, small toilets or baby change tables, cleanliness and visible efforts towards cleanliness, and the presence of vandalism.

The absence of convenience and comfort can lead women to avoid travel or opt to use the car instead. The car is seen as the convenient ‘hassle-free’ travel option, offering easy access, door-to-door service, seating, space for companions and belongings, and the freedom to travel at any time.

Reliability

Reliability means that users can trust a system to be punctual, run a frequent and predictable service, provide dependable ticket machines, deliver real-time passenger information, and that services are safe and usable upon arrival.

Women’s complex travel patterns and specific needs make them disproportionately impacted by unreliable services. When services are inconsistent - failing to arrive, departing early or late, denying passenger boarding, or having unreliable journey times can lead to missed connections or delays, affecting women more severely. This is particularly true for women who are travelling at off-peak times, are trip-chaining, feel unsafe waiting, are travelling alone, or are caring for someone else. Women are more likely than men to accompany others to medical appointments, and unreliable services can result in missed appointments which require rescheduling and repeated journeys. To mitigate these delays, women often depart significantly earlier, which increases journey times and greater inconvenience.

Safety

Safety concerns are more prevalent amongst women than men in public spaces, especially on public transport or at night. Consequently, those who can afford it often prefer to use the car as it is considered a safer option.

A single unsettling incident often has a lasting impact on women’s sense of safety and their daily choices. Fortunately for most women, violent and unsafe incidents are relatively rare, but the psychological impact of such trauma is serious and persistent. The absence of safe infrastructure and support from fellow passengers can exacerbate feelings of isolation and vulnerability for women while travelling. In order to build trust in alternative modes of transport it is essential to establish both physical and psychological safety through improved social and physical infrastructure.

The impacts of inequality in transport

The disparity in access to transport that is safe, convenient, comfortable, reliable and affordable has significant implications for women’s daily lives. Adequate transport is a key enabler for accessing education, employment, essential services, leisure opportunities and enables active citizenship. Mobility constraints for women exacerbate existing gender inequalities and can lead to poorer health and education outcomes, underrepresentation in paid employment and a lack of representation and engagement of women in public life.

The impacts of transport disparities are not confined to women alone. Many individuals must navigate transport systems, cities and spaces that have been designed with an in-built bias, which don’t fully meet their needs. This includes women, children, the elderly, the LGBTQ+ community, people with disabilities, people of colour and countless others. These groups who frequently need to adapt their daily routines and aspirations to fit within the constraints of existing urban and transport frameworks.

When the unique of different groups are raised, they are often dismissed as minority issues or deemed optional, rather than essential. Yet, in practice, these individuals collectively constitute the majority of the population. To effectively design contemporary built environments that are fit for all, we must prioritise the understanding of differing lived experiences and address diverse needs accordingly. This requires challenging the societally ingrained male bias in what is perceived as "normal" and striving for inclusivity in urban planning and design.

Taking the first steps towards designing a more inclusive “normal”

Public policy aims to create more sustainable places and spaces. For a transition to active and sustainable transport choices, we must explore and analyse the challenges, needs and expectations of all people. This can be achieved by adopting people-centred and inclusive design, strategic planning, and user research methods. By embracing these approaches we can provide guidance, based on lived experiences.

To understand gender-specific needs and address biases through transport design, these are some steps that you can take:

1. Conducting a needs assessment

To address local needs effectively, the first step is to conduct a thorough needs assessment using data disaggregated by gender. This could be complemented by ethnographic research and exploratory interviews with transport users. This will provide insights to user’s barriers to mobility. By reviewing existing policies and strategies through a gender lens, you can ensure these insights are integrated in future planning, leading to more inclusive mobility.

2. Undertaking consultation

Effective consultation including activities that accommodate diverse needs is also essential. This involves hosting events in easily accessible locations and scheduling them at convenient times for all. Additionally, providing online participation alternatives can broaden engagement across a wider range of groups. Inclusive partnerships ensure that stakeholder representation is diverse. Applying a gender lens to staff training and activities, including providing gender-specific safety training will help to foster a sense of community security.

3. Enhancing end-to-end mobility

In the design phase, the focus should be placed on enhancing end-to-end mobility. This can be achieved by improving lighting and visibility throughout journeys, increasing transport coverage, service frequency, and reliability. These are particularly important for night transport services. Ensuring that night services support women’s journeys can reduce the need for expensive alternative modes.

4. Designing child-friendly spaces

Designing child-friendly public transport and adjoining public spaces can help to enable children’s independent mobility. To promote cycling as a viable and safe alternative to the car it is important to develop high-quality cycling infrastructure that is safe and inclusive. Clear cycling etiquette is key to establish, and cycle training and information on safe practices should be communicated.

5. Enabling a better transport experience for women

In the operations stage, it is key to enable a better experience for women. This should include creating a supportive bystander culture and building awareness of the available support and counselling for victims of violence or harassment on transport. Promoting new habits like car-free weekends and ensuring that real-time information at transport stops is reliable, can both help to encourage use of public transport or alternative modes. Developing ticketing systems that support the mobility of care, accommodate multiple short trips, and cater to women’s travel patterns involving dependents, are important. This will enable women to use public transport in a way which supports their needs and is more affordable.

6. Monitoring and evaluating interventions and programmes

Finally, undertaking monitoring and evaluation is an essential step. Conducting regular women’s safety audits and developing effective incident reporting mechanisms can provide insightful data. This will help to ensure safety and represent the diverse community. Additionally, adopting gender-responsive key performance indicators and collecting gender-disaggregated baseline and monitoring data from the start of the programme, can help assess the impact of any policies or interventions. This will provide more robust evidence for future decision-making.

The Delivery Associates Network can help you think through some of these steps to create more inclusive and accessible transport systems for women in your towns and cities. If you want to receive more support, your Delivery Associate can provide additional support with the help of our Subject Matter Experts.

Alannah is a transport and cities advisory consultant. She works across a broad range of topics such as transport strategies, sustainability in cities, placemaking, gender equality and social inclusion in cities. In an attempt to tackle the everyday problems which people experience in our cities and built environment, Alannah embeds user research and design thinking skills into her work to help better understand and design for users.

If you have any questions on this topic, or would like support, please contact your Delivery Associate, or email DeliveryAssociatesNetwork@Arup.com