When compared to men, women are more likely to feel unsafe while using public transport. This CIHT Monthly Masterclass looked at making public transport a safer space for women and girls from different angles, including research by Susan Leadbetter (WSP); accounts of policing strategies from DI Sam Painter (British Transport Police), and recommendations from Jo Field (Women in Transport). These speakers discussed the steps that are needed to make sure public transport networks are safe – everything from designing a space to personal behaviour.
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Here are some of the key takeaways from the CIHT Masterclass webinar on Making public transport a safe space for women and girls:
The presentations at this Masterclass highlighted that sexual harassment is not a rare occurrence on public transport, and that 94% of women who took part in the study by Susan Leadbetter at WSP had felt threatened when using public transport. One of the main factors contributing this prevalence is that the design of stations and transport fails to take a human-centered approach, ultimately meaning that woman are not consulted often enough during the design process.
If men felt scared or vulnerable on public transport, then something would have been done about it long ago. – quote from presentation by Susan Leadbetter, WSP
The process of reporting incidents is often seen as being unclear, with many not reporting as a result of this. Additionally, research has highlighted that many women fail to report incidents due to feeling as if nothing will happen or even due to having a negative experience with the reporting system previously; 19% of women in WSP’s study said that they would not report future incidents due to previous experiences of reporting and having their case handled by the police.
The commuting culture in London is seen as fostering an environment on public transport that enables offences to easily occur. For example, people on the tube or bus in London can feel as though they are able to ignore any incidents that are occurring by continuing to read their book or listen to music, and that it is the victim who should have to deal with everything. We need to see people taking a stand and intervening in these incidents so that offenders are less likely to succeed.
Transport is used by everyone, so it is important that a diverse range of views inform transport planning and design; and that a range of stakeholders are engaged with early and often. It is also important to make use of stakeholder’s expertise and ensuring that there is continuous dialogue. If we are to tackle these issues, then it is important to Involve women and girls at the design stage, ensuring that there is safety by design.
Women make up almost half of the total workforce, but only 20% of the transport workforce. – Jo Field
CIHT held a recent Masterclass webinar focused on making public trasnport a safe space for women and girls, with insights from Susan Leadbetter MCIHT, Senior Consultant, WSP; Detective Inspector Sam Painter VIAWG Strategy & Implementation Lead, British Transport Police; Jo Field FCIHT Chart.PR FCIPR, Women in Transport President and founder and CEO of JFG communications. CIHT members can watch the webinar recording here.
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