How making micromobility safer for women can achieve safer cities for everyone

Urban mobility is not gender-neutral. Public and shared transport often fails to accommodate the diverse and complex mobility needs of women. Men in the UK continue to make twice as many cycle trips compared to women . We see this pattern emerging in new forms of micromobility too, like escooters, but not everywhere and we need to identify what broader factors are negatively affecting uptake. Our ridership profile in the Nordics is close to even between women and men, all countries with longer histories of gender inclusion, suggesting micromobility may not be the challenge to increased adoption. TIER is committed to understanding how micromobility innovation can respond to barriers that prevent women from moving freely in cities, and to develop and share best practices across the 500+ cities we operate in. To change mobility for good, and understand the mobility needs of women, TIER partnered with Safe & the City to conduct a multi-regional study of 403 women in the UK and 411 women in Berlin. Note that this study is part of a broader shift within TIER, including Women of TIER, which strives for a diverse and inclusive workplace and industry by showcasing female role models and a DEI strategy to improve representation at all levels of our business so it too reflects a more inclusive rider base.

Project activities

If you work together with external partners, list the most important partners and briefly describe their role.

TIER partnered with Safe and the City to conduct the multi-regional study that involved 403 women in the UK and 411 women in Berlin. Safe & the City is a social enterprise on a mission to become the most responsible data insights provider to enable the design of smarter and safer cities. They are committed to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) for Gender Equality, Reduced Inequalities and Sustainable Cities and Communities. Safe and the City is composed by a diverse team of leading global experts that care to see a world where everyone has the right to be safe.

Please describe the project activities you carried/are carrying out and the time period over which these were implemented.

The aim of this study was to better understand how TIER can play a role in making streets safer for all, tackling the challenges women currently face in public spaces and improving access to more sustainable modes of transport. The study aimed to inform TIER’s own policies and practices, but also provide valuable insights on how cities and public spaces can be designed, to help meet the urban mobility needs of women.

List the actions you carried/are carrying out

Date

Tuesday, 31 May, 2022

Evaluation

What has been the effect of the activities?

The study has also shown that women are interested in micomobilility options. Nearly two-thirds of women in the UK would try an e-scooter if they were available, and results from Berlin (a city with more mature micromobility solutions compared to UK cities) show the potential for shifting away from car dependency. With almost one in every four women in Berlin using e-scooters a few times a week or more, the potential for micromobility choice to provide women greater mobility autonomy is clear. The study has revealed several key results: We need to design transport with women in mind and by women We need to address nighttime urban safety concerns Gender-inclusive vehicle design should be considered by transport providers Women want to use micromobility. The key findings of the study also displayed that: Time of day impacts safety perceptions While 73% of women in the UK would feel safe riding during the day, at night it drops to 3%. In Berlin, the stats are 66% and 10% respectively. CCTV was key to making women feel safer in London when using a shared e-scooter at night (57%). Visibility to others was also highly valued (54%), as well as a well-lit route (51%). Safety concerns differ, depending on the phase of the journey When picking up and dropping off an e-scooter 31% of women are concerned by a lack of lighting in parking areas. Furrthmore 25% of women are concerned about being stalked or followed. Whereas when riding an e-scooter, the behavior of other road users became the top-ranked concern for women in both the UK (58%) and Berlin (47%). Furthermore during the ride over a third (35%) of women in Berlin were concerned about how the e-scooter felt on road infrastructure not designed for micromobility. Gender inclusive vehicle design and training: 71% of women in the UK agreed training would improve how safe they felt. Additionally the study provides insight into how micromobility is uniquely able to respond to a wider gender imbalance across urban mobility.

Please briefly explain why your initiative is a good example of improving road safety.

We believe that the only way to solve a problem is to start with an analysis of the current situation. This study aims precisely to evaluate the state of the art to propose solutions based on concrete and current needs. The study has a very specific objective: to improve the safety of women on e-scooters and to facilitate the accessibility of e-scooters by women. TIER has since taken these results and started applying them to our services. In both Berlin & London TIER has run women-led, in-person, safety training to help women feel comfortable and confident in using micromobility. TIER has also shared our study results with cities and other transport providers so they too can play their role in ensuring public spaces are safe for women. For example in London, TIER led a women’s safety session with Transport for London and other micromobility operators, to together understand how the micromobility services in London could be best designed to meet the needs of women.

How have you shared information about your project and its results?

The information was shared with the managers in the 34 countries in which TIER operates as well as being disseminated throughout the organization. Furthermore, we have informed decision makers at the European level, including the European Commission officials working on safety issues and the Cabinet of the Commissioner for Transport. Applying for this important award is part of our strategy to further share the important message that we can design urban transport to be inclusive.

How making micromobility safer for women can achieve safer cities for everyone