‘Gender equality’ A new topic in mobility?

‘Gender equality’A new topic in mobility? ECOMM 2008 – 5th of June 2008 by Annemie Van Uytven (Mobiel 21, BE)

Overview presentation • Gender equality: why a topic in mobility? • Mobile Leuven Women • Description • Goals • Methodology • Results • Recommendations • CIVITAS MOBILIS: gender issues • Workplan • Selected gender measure by the cities

Gender equality: why a topic in mobility? • Promoting and implementing sustainable mobility  social dimension often left behind • Gender: a critical dimension of the diversity of travel needs and experiences • Research (in UK, Ireland and Sweden)  differences in the way women and men travel (travel patterns and transport use)

Gender equality: why a topic in mobility? • Incorporating gender inclusive mobility • European Commission: 6th Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development  gender mainstreaming

Mobile Leuven Women: description • DESCRIPTION • qualitative research project in the city of Leuven in 2007 (Belgium, capital of province Flemish-Brabant, 90 000 inhabitants) • collaboration between City Department of Equal Opportunities and Mobiel 21 • co-financed by: • Federal Ministry of Equal Opportunities • Department of Equal Opportunities of the city of Leuven • The Flemish government • research on mobility needs of women in the city

Mobile Leuven Women: goals • GOALS • Realising a research project highlighting the social dimension of mobility • Investigate whether mobility needs differ between men and women in the city • Formulate policy recommendations for local and regional authorities

Mobile Leuven Women: methodology • METHODOLOGY • literature study • in-depth interviews with 14 stakeholders in the city of Leuven • 4 focus groups of different categories of women • underprivileged women, • women with young children (age -12), • professionally active without or with older children, • senior women citizens (age 65+)

Mobile Leuven Women: results (1) • RESULTS: literature (Belgian situation) • General: differences between men and women in mobility behaviour • Travel modes: • women  car passenger, on foot • men  car driver, bike • Travel distance: men  larger compared to women • Travel time: men  more compared to women • Travel motives: • men  in public domain (work, leisure time) • women  in private domain (children and family)

Mobile Leuven Women: results (2) • RESULTS: in-depth interviews • Main question: support for working on ‘gender and mobility’? • Interviews with local organisations working on the themes of • mobility, • women, • underpriviledged people or • senior citizens • Find out about ideas, problems, best practices about gender and mobility

Mobile Leuven Women: results (3) • RESULTS: in-depth interviews • For most organisations visited: fairly new topic • Only for target group ‘underpriviledged women’ some initiatives were taken

Mobile Leuven Women: results (4) • Results: focus groups • Findings from literature and interviews are basis for discussion • Organisation of 4 focus groups: • Underpriviliged women • Female senior citizens (aged over 65) • Mothers with young children (-12 years) • Women without children or with older children (+12) • Total: 33 participants

Mobile Leuven Women: results (5) • Focus group discussions on: • Travel motives; • Travel modes; • Travel time; • Difficulties while travelling; • Organisation of travel; • Sollutions for mobility problems encountered.

Mobile Leuven Women: results (6) • Results for every target group • Underprivileged women: • Primiraly walk or take the bus • Often don’t have driving licence or private car • Struggling to combine work and children • Cycling not very popular, certainly not amongst migrant women

Mobile Leuven Women: results (7) • Mothers with young children • Very ‘car minded’ - easier to combine tasks (child care, full time employment, daily shopping) • Work close to home and/or have a part time job • Not easy to convince to cycle more because of multiple tasks (children, carrying heavy groceries, time management)

Mobile Leuven Women: results (8) • Professionally active women without children or with older children • Primiraly cycle in the city, using cycling bags for groceries • Commuters mainly use PT (bus and train)

Mobile Leuven Women: results (9) • Female senior citizens (65+) • Primiraly use the bus (free senior pass for all people aged 65 or older) • Few cycle (reduced fysical ability + busyness and speed of traffic) • Few use the car (busyness and speed of traffic + children’s advise to stop driving a car)

Mobile Leuven Women: results (10) • General results • Differences between men and women in travel modes, time, distance and motives • Gender differences are based on traditional roles and tasks • Trip chaining is typically a ‘female’ activity, especially for women with younger children

Mobile Leuven Women: policy recommendations • Policy recommendations • Install shopping bag lockers; • Install public toilets (clean!); • Install pram renting system; • Install benches in the city centre; • More storage room for bike trailers and carrier cycles;

Mobile Leuven Women: policy recommendations • Policy recommendations • Accessibility of prams on buses and corteousness on the bus; • More information regarding car sharing services; • Lack of communication towards women as a target group for local mobility issues! • involvement of women’s organisations and schools in communication • spread info via shops, day-care centres, doctor’s practices, etc.

CIVITAS MOBILIS: gender issues • CIVITAS MOBILIS (2005-2009) • partners cities: Toulouse (France), Debrecen (Hungary), Ljubljana (Slovenia), Venice (Italy), and Odense (Denmark) • striving to create a culture for clean urban mobility in the framework of sustainable development, ensuring involvement of all relevant stakeholders and participation of citizens. • specific coordination on 5 policy themes across all sites and measures social inclusion and equity in mobility

CIVITAS MOBILIS: workplan gender issues Workplan gender issues • Task 1: Identification partners gender focus group  • Task 2: ‘Gender screening’ of all Mobilis-measures  • Task 3: Selection of ‘gender measures’ by every city  • Task 4: Implementation ‘gender measures’ in cities  • Task 5: Compilation of results and recommendations

CIVITAS MOBILIS: selected gender measures (1) • Selection of gender measures by the cities • City of TOULOUSE: integration of gender dimension into evaluation activities in 3 measures • Innovative multimodal PT contracts, services and electronic ticketing • Awareness raising campaign for changing mobility behaviour • Promotion of bicycle use and integration with PT services

CIVITAS MOBILIS: selected gender measures (2) • Selection of gender measures by the cities • City of Debrecen: survey on citizens’ satisfaction regarding new cycling racks (specific gender focus) • City of Ljubljana: gender analysis on PT use

CIVITAS MOBILIS: selected gender measures (3) • Selection of gender measures by the cities • City of Venice: new car sharing service survey on users behaviour and needs (specific gender focus) • City of Odense: interactive traffic training for children (differences in traffic behaviour between boys and girls)

CIVITAS MOBILIS: results • Results • Results and recommandations will be ready by September 2008

Gender equality: a new topic in mobility? • More information • Annemie Van Uytven • Mobiel 21 • Vital Decosterstraat 67A • 3000 Leuven (Belgium) • + 32 16 31 77 01 • annemie.van.uytven@mobiel21.be

‘Gender equality’ A new topic in mobility?