by Federica Giardina, Project Manager at Ecoserveis

Imagine a world where every woman and girl feels safe, confident, and empowered during their daily commute. Unfortunately, this vision is still quite far from reality due to major flaws in our transport systems. While many of us take reliable transportation for granted, for women, it’s often a daily struggle. This silent crisis, known by the insiders as transport poverty, impacts millions, determining who gets to work, who accesses healthcare, and who can pursue education or just enjoy their spare time. When you add gender into the mix, the issue becomes even more complex, trapping women in a relentless cycle of poverty and dependence.

Transport poverty isn’t just about the lack of a private car or the availability of public transports. It includes all barriers to accessing affordable, reliable, and safe transportation. These barriers can be financial, geographical, or social, and they hit the most vulnerable collectives, especially and included women. Without good transportation, people can’t reach essential services and opportunities, keeping them stuck in poverty. Women often face unique challenges because they have different mobility needs, often related to unpaid care work. They have to juggle caregiving roles (often have to take children and other dependents to places like day-care centres, schools, or activities) with jobs, making their travel patterns more complex, unlike men who typically just drive to the office.

Economically, women, especially single mothers, bear the brunt of transport costs. With lower average incomes and more caregiving responsibilities, transportation expenses can be overwhelming. Expensive transport or long commutes eat into their limited resources, leaving less for essentials like food, healthcare, and education. Women also suffer from time poverty, balancing work, childcare, and household duties. Inefficient transport exacerbates this, limiting their economic and social participation. Should we maybe consider also the immobility patterns of these women who stay home attending household duties and having minimum contact with the external world?

If we would want to add an extra layer to the cake, the still limited political will is a big one. Planners and policymakers, often male engineers, focus on technical aspects like infrastructure and traffic management, neglecting the social dimensions like gender equality. This narrow focus sidelines the crucial issue of women’s safety and accessibility. The male gaze also dominates the design and management of mobility infrastructure. Public spaces and transport systems are often designed without considering women’s unique needs and experiences, creating environments that can feel hostile or unsafe, like poorly illuminated streets or isolated bus stops. These can make women vulnerable to harassment and assault.

One of the biggest obstacles of this battle is the invisibility of data. Actually, we, as a society, are navigating in the dark, unable to address the unique challenges women face because we simply don’t have the information. Caroline Criado Perez highlights in her book[1] the invisibility of women in data and how this leads to dangerous environments, especially at night. When women’s experiences are not considered, they become invisible in the planning process, resulting in a transport system that fails them. Inclusive design will not only promote gender equity but also reduce transport poverty by ensuring that everyone has equal access to mobility. One way to address this is by introducing measures that specifically address women’s safety, such as women-only metro cars. Cities like Tokyo, Mexico DF, and Cairo[2] have implemented these measures to provide a safer commuting option for women. Additionally, cities like Vienna have redesigned public spaces with gender-sensitive planning[3], ensuring better lighting and accessibility, which significantly improves safety for women.

Gender-disaggregated data is crucial to understanding how women use public transport, the problems they encounter, and the safety concerns that plague their journeys. Without this data, we can’t develop effective solutions tailored to their needs. It’s like trying to solve a puzzle with half the pieces missing. This data gap perpetuates a slow and equal policy development. Decision-makers, unaware of the issue’s severity, fail to prioritize women’s safety, rendering their policies ineffective and leaving women even more vulnerable and voiceless.

Inadequate infrastructure makes the problem worse. The constant fear of theft, harassment, or assault restricts their freedom of movement, especially after dark. Proper lighting, well-maintained sidewalks, and secure waiting areas are not luxuries—they are necessities that can dramatically enhance women’s sense of safety and mobility. Improved infrastructure will also alleviate transport poverty by making travel safer and more accessible for all, thereby opening up new economic and social opportunities. In many EU countries, social norms and gender inequality create significant barriers. Discrimination limits women’s mobility and safety, demanding a complete rethink of how we design our transport systems. Leslie Kern, in her book Feminist City, discusses the bias in current urban planning that overlooks women’s needs, leading to unequal mobility patterns.

What’s the solution to all this? The path forward requires a multifaceted approach. We need better data collection, gathering comprehensive, gender-disaggregated information to understand women’s transport needs. This must be coupled with targeted policies and regulations explicitly aimed at improving women’s safety in public transport. Political leaders and decision-makers must shift their focus to prioritize social dimensions in transport planning, embedding gender equality at the core, probably with a higher percentage of women in  decision-making positions. In 2024, and in light of the recent global events that hit our countries like Covid-19, our governments should invest in better infrastructure, emphasizing lighting, maintenance, and security measures. The goal should be to redesign public spaces to address the whole community safety and accessibility needs, considering different unique social and cultural contexts. Women’s safety and mobility are not just women’s issues—they are societal issues that affect us all.

After minding the gap, it’s time to bridge it and ensure that our transport systems are safe, inclusive, and equitable for all. The whole point is not just about getting from point A to point B—it’s about doing so with dignity, safety, and equality for everyone, breaking the chains of transport poverty and opening up a world of possibilities.

At Ecoserveis, our mission is to foster a just and sustainable energy model—environmentally, economically and socially. We’re also dedicated to promoting just mobility, ensuring everyone has access to equitable and sustainable transportation. Using an intersectional perspective, we tackle energy poverty and vulnerability, addressing all axes of inequality. By bridging gaps and fostering inclusive solutions, we aim to create a world where everyone enjoys dignified, safe, and equal access to energy and mobility. To fulfil this, we actively participate in the group Inequalities in Transport, addressing mobility disparities among the most vulnerable communities and territories ensuring that no one is left behind.

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[1] Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men

[2] https://cgnetworks.org/news/transformative-urbanism-cairos-women-only-metro-carriages

[3] https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20210524-how-vienna-built-a-gender-equal-city