Best practice on designing for equitable public transport networks through accessibility modelling in emerging COVID-19 cities
Published: January 2021
Main topic: Gender, Crisis response, COVID-19, Public transport
Study countrie(s): Myanmar, Myanmar
Written by: Ian Stott, Ruby Stringer
Published by: Integrated Transport Planning Ltd.
Study type: Research report
Urban transport networks have historically been designed around journeys to work in the formal sector – traditionally considered the primary trip purpose. However, it has been well-documented that although this tends to serve the male population well, women’s journeys are often to informal employment, more complex, with multiple destinations or by being accompanied by children or baggage.
COVID-19 has created a need to rapidly review and re-plan public transport networks in order to differently serve the most dominant journeys. As such, this project has sought to answer the core question, ‘How can urban transport networks be rapidly reviewed, redesigned and rolled out for a more gender-equitable system?’
The impacts of COVID-19 and associated reduction in transport services have created several shifts in this paradigm:
– Firstly, many workers are no longer making their single-leg trips to work, reducing the dominance of these trips in line with the reduction in service. Meanwhile women’s typically undervalued trips (accessing markets, health centres, unpaid caring roles etc.) continue, as they remain vital to the functioning of their communities.
– Secondly, due to the irreplaceable nature of these trips, the impact of reductions in transport services through 2020 will have disproportionately impacted women’s ability to support their families.
– Finally, looking forward past COVID-19, the need to enable and invest in local trips has particular relevance for women’s journeys.
The primary objective of this user guide is to provide best practice techniques that can be rapidly applied in designing equitable networks during and following the COVID-19 crisis. The guidance will also be applicable to any urban area seeking to re-design their transport network without the means to undertake a full (traditional) study.
To help guide the understanding of the methodologies and tools being discussed we will be using the city of Mandalay, Myanmar, as a pilot study. This location has been chosen for the following reasons:
– Myanmar is a LIC.
– Mandalay City has a population of around 1.2 million people with a relatively simple network of formal public transport, from experience we hav
