Gender-inclusive Urban Transport: Issues and Initiatives

Jeff Turner Visiting Lecturer, University of Leeds, UK & Independent Consultant jeffreymturner@hotmail.com
Prepared for Regional Seminar Gender, Urban Development and Water Supply and Sanitation 14-16 November 2011, Vientiane, Lao PDR
The views expressed in this paper are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), or its Board of Governors, or the governments they represent. ADB does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this paper and accepts no responsibility for any consequence of their use. The countries listed in this paper do not imply any view on ADB's part as to sovereignty or independent status or necessarily conform to ADB's terminology.

Overview
Why a focus on gender and urban transport? What we know about the gender differences in urban transport? What approach can we take to gender-balanced urban transport planning and investment decision-making? What tools and practical measures are there for the design of transport infrastructure? What tools and practical measures are there for operation of transport services? How can we change the gender profile of who is employed in the transport sector?

Why gender and urban transport?

Globally, women travel shorter distances, by slower modes (public transport or walking), for different purposes to different places, often with children or other people, combining a set of activities within one journey (known as trip chaining) whereas men are more likely to travel unaccompanied on a single purpose trip. Women also perceived greater degree of risk whilst travelling and are also victim to considerable degree of sexual harassment The management and performance of urban transport system places different burdens on men and women with the costs of poor public transport system performance being often borne by women turning down employment opportunities further away in favour of lower-paid local opportunities to manage their household and productive activities within the time available. Improvements to urban transport affect men and women differently and not always positively - for example, a focus on improving major transport corridors into a city centre, may favour men at the expense of women as more men may travel to city centre employment and more women may work locally or in peripheral locations.

What do we know about the differences in how men and women travel across cities?
Evidence from low-income populations in Chennai (India) and Chengdu (China) in 2008 highlights the difference in travel between men and women As many as 83 per cent of the poor women in Chennai walked to work, compared to the men, of whom 63 per cent walked; in Chengdu, 59 per cent of the women surveyed walked, while only 39 per cent of the men walked. in Chennai, male bicycle rates of 8 per cent and women rates of only 1 per cent, a cycling mode share of 32 per cent for men in Chengdu, and a much lower but still solid 19 per cent for women. Research done by for the Dhaka Urban Transport Project in 2000 highlights the differences in how frequently men and women travel 70.6 % of women workers made one to two trips per day,7 % made three to four trips per day, whereas 85% of male workers, 85.0 % made one to two trips per day and 14.3 % made up to three to four trips per day. ADB sponsored research in Yerevan, Armenia highlighted that women were more dependent on public transport than men. Women spent more time travel on the Metro system with their journey times varying between 20 minutes to 1, 5 hours a day (while for men its 15 40 minutes) Women relied more on off-peak and peripheral public transport routes.

What are the challenges in collecting genderdisaggregated urban transport data?

Mobility-focused diary surveys are a common method for collecting data on how people travel. Frequently focus at the household level. Do not gender-disaggregate travel patterns. Even when collected is analysis is rarely gender-disaggregated. However, there is often no clear consensus on travel survey methodology, making it impossible to do comparisons between cities or countries Some countries dont have national travel surveys Time-use surveys at the national and city level may be productive way forward as they provide a more integrated gender-disaggregated approach to understanding daily life and travels part in it.

How can we plan for urban transport in a genderequitable manner?

There is a need for a new planning and governance approach to gender-balanced urban transport management and development There is a need for new genderequitable transport planning and decision-making processes There is a need for a new toolkit of measures and policies Participatory Approaches such as Gender-responsive Budgeting and Gender & Transport Audits may help There is also a need to build capacity internally within transport agencies to plan transport in a gender-equitable manner. 1 Situational analysis 2 Assessment of Policy and . programme for gender sensitivity 3 Adequacy of financial resources for 2 4 Monitoring expenditure 5 Impact assessment on gender equity Needs Policy/pro gramme

Inputs

Outputs Impact

5 Stages of Gender-responsive budgeting

How do we design urban transport infrastructure that reflect women's needs

Walking is a very important mode for women not only for personal journeys but also as part of a citys commercial freight distribution system. Infrastructure to meet that need is important Research in Jakarta found that women had design issues with new suburban rail systems around: Handles in trains Height of step into trains Safety of access to and within stations Need for integration of rail infrastructure with surrounding informal economy

Source photos: (top left and right) T KRUGER and K LANDMAN (2007); bottom righ Author: bottom left (Maurice Koop at http://www.flickr.com/photos/mauricekoop/311344940/

How do we operate urban transport services that reflect women's needs?

There have been a number of women-only carriages introduced to rail based services across the world. that women-only rail services have spurred very mixed reactions Some societies view them as positive thing, however, concerns were raised about the need to empower women in the promotion of such measures and NOT seen as the locking away of women passengers.

Source: Peters (2011)

How do we operate urban transport services that reflect women's needs?

Some cities have introduced women-only bus and taxi services Mexico City introduced women-only buses. 22 vehicles operating 3 routes across the city every day. Dhaka has repeatedly sort to introduce women only buses and currently operate 6 buses on 3 different routes Research highlights the challenge of moving beyond just being a token service. Public sectors role in regulations around reserved seats for women within the mainstream system, the pricing structures and planning will have greater impact. The importance of integration between formal and informal public transport is also key.
Source: Top Peters (2011) & Bottom Rahman (2010)

How do we encourage more women into the urban transport workforce?

Increasing number of initiatives globally to increase the number of women working in the transport sector Well-established practice of incorporating womens employment into rural road infrastructure projects. Increasingly, new transport systems such as Metros and BRT in places like Ahmedabad are being used as opportunity to change the gender composition of the transport workforce
Source: Top Peters (2011) & BRTS Blog India http://bestmumbai.blogspot.com/2009/10/ahmedabad-brtgifts-first-woman-driver.html

Overview
Why a focus on gender and urban transport? What we know about the gender differences in urban transport? What approach can we take to gender-balanced urban transport planning and investment decision-making? What tools and practical measures are there for the design of transport infrastructure? What tools and practical measures are there for operation of transport services? How can we change the gender profile of who is employed in the transport sector?

THANK YOU!

References
ADB (2011) Research undertaken for Gender Assessment of Yerevan Public Transport System (personal communication) Anderson, Janine and Nelson Panzio (1986). Transportation and public safety: services that make service use possible, in Marianne Schmink, Judith Bruce and Marilyn Kohn, eds., Learning about Women and Urban Services in Latin America and the Caribbean (New York, Population Council) pp. 246-66. Kruger, T and Landman, (2007) Crime and Public Transport South African Transport Conference, 2007 http://researchspace.csir.co.za/dspace/handle/10204/1028 Peters, D (2011) Gender and Sustainable Urban Mobility, thematic study prepared for Sustainable Urban Mobility: Global Report on Human Settlements 2013 http://www.unhabitat.org/grhs/2013 Rahman, Shafiq-ur, (2010) Special Bus Service for Women in Dhaka City, Bangladesh, paper prepared for 12th WCTR, July 11-15, 2010, Lisbon, Portugal Shefali, M (2000) Study on Gender Dimension in Dhaka Urban Transport Project. World Bank, http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTGENDERTRANSPORT/Resources/bangurbantransport. pdf Srinivasa, S. (2008) A spatial exploration of the accessibility of low-income women: Chengdu, China and Chennai, India, In Uteng T.P. and T. Cresswell (Eds) Gendered Mobilities Ashgate, Avebury, pp. 143158 Turner, J (2011) Urban Mass Transit and Social Sustainability in Jakarta, Indonesia, case study prepared for Sustainable Urban Mobility: Global Report on Human Settlements 2013 http://www.unhabitat.org/grhs/2013