It is a sad reality but according to a recent survey done, only 9% of women in Indian cities feel public transport is completely safe, which is alarming. While 3% claim it is completely unsafe. The report was titled ‘What Do Women and Girls Want from Urban Mobility.
A majority of women claimed that public transport is somewhat safe but also found it unsafe at nights, as per the report. As many as 35% of women felt most city roads are not lit properly, and only 7% felt that their cities had seamless paths. Over 9,000 women from across 11 cities were asked about the current state of public transport. The findings revealed shocking data that 59% of women used public transport despite over 80% claiming that they felt somewhat safe using it during the day, but not at night. The key factor driving public transport use among women was affordability. Other reasons were coverage, frequency, safety, and comfort.
One of the key issues raised by women was the lack of last-mile connectivity which news to be improved. The report also noted that most of the women had to wait at least 15 minutes on average for buses, trains.
Women have a higher dependence on public transport than men. women aged between 19 and 60 years — used public transport for short and long trips. In-depth interviews with the participants revealed that they were either harassed during trips or had witnessed it or heard about it.
The question in this scenario remains to be answered is that why are their needs not prioritized during the planning of the government? Should we not contribute to a more inclusive transport system by tapping into women’s experiences of bus journeys? Also, we need to encourage gender sensitivity among men, we have to teach them that it is not ok to harass a woman or a girl while traveling on a means of local transport. They also need to be dealt with strictly. Women also must have access to police where they can freely tell their problems in order to get justice.