EFFORTS to reduce traffic and improve road safety will miss their mark if
they don鈥檛 pay attention to the needs of women. That鈥檚 the message from a new
transport survey, thought to be the most comprehensive of its kind attempted
worldwide.
The report comes from the London Research Centre, which was set up by the
city鈥檚 borough councils. It shows that women are largely responsible for recent
increases in the city鈥檚 road traffic and reveals an alarming jump in the number
of women injured in car crashes.
Since the early 1980s, fewer pedestrians and bus passengers have been injured
on London鈥檚 roads. The number of men injured in cars has also fallen. But
casualties among women drivers and passengers are rising fast
(see Figure).
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This is partly because more women are driving. Most of the figures in the
report come from a fresh analysis of two major transport surveys carried out in
1981 and 1991. The number of journeys driven by women was almost 50 per cent
higher in the 1991 survey than a decade before.
The study鈥檚 backers are particularly concerned about the steep rise in
serious injuries to women entailing a night or more in hospital. The number per
vehicle mile travelled鈥攁 standard measure of road safety鈥攕hot up by
173 per cent between 1981 and 1991. 鈥淭his is the most disturbing thing,鈥� says
Karen Sullivan of London Transport, which helped pay for the study.
The increase in the number of women driving is a nationwide trend, and a
hugely important one in the context of the British government鈥檚 efforts to curb
the growth of traffic. The survey shows that the increase in the number of cars
on London鈥檚 roads recorded between 1981 and 1991 was entirely due to women
making more trips.
The report says that attempts to restrain traffic will have to take account
of sex differences鈥攚omen, for instance, are more likely to do the shopping
and take the children to school. 鈥淵ou will need a gender-sensitive approach,鈥�
says Sullivan.
Women, like men, often find the car more convenient than public transport or
walking. But one reason why women are reluctant to take the bus or
walk鈥攔ated the second most important鈥攊s the fear of crime or
assault. Women interviewed for the report frequently mentioned their unease
about crime.
Transport planners worldwide need to take perceptions of crime into account,
experts say. 鈥淚t is fear of crime that is far worse than the reality,鈥� says Sian
Rees of the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, a charity concerned with women鈥檚 safety.
鈥淪tatistically, men are more likely to be attacked in the streets than women.鈥�