KOCHI: Highlighting the theme of ‘Women and Public Transport’, the third edition of the Kochi Public Transport Day campaign will be celebrated on Wednesday. The events for the day focus on women, their mobility needs and the importance of sustainable public transport for them.
At 4 pm, the campaigners will march from Rainbow Bridge at Marine Drive to Lalan Tower at High Court Junction to promote the message of safe, accessible and convenient public transport for women. This will be followed by a panel discussion on ‘Going Places: Safety, Comfort and Convenience of Women in Public Transport’ at the open square near Lalan Tower.
The panel for the discussion includes Monolita Chatterjee (architect/urban planner), Nimmi J Chakola (entrepreneur), Ajina Mohan (media relations, Kudumbashree District Mission), Aswathy Dilip (urban designer/senior programme manager, Institute for Transportation & Development Policy) and Namrata Khona (corporate trainer/consultant).
Sara John (senior project associate, Centre for Public Policy Research) will moderate the discussion. The Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) will honour metro passengers with the highest patronage in the month of March with the ‘Shreshtasanchari Puraskaram’ at the venue.
The general public is free to join the rally and discussion to help promote the campaign.
Though more women are participating in economic, social and political activities compared to a decade ago, there are disheartening statistics about women’s transportation safety around the world.
Lack of accessibility to public transport and inadequate transport services cost women their livelihood and independence. In this context, the Centre for Public Policy Research (CPPR) attempts to shed light on the challenges before women using public transport and working in the sector.
The panel discussion will delve into the issues faced by women and on making public transport in Kochi women-friendly. Kochi Public Transport Day is supported by KMRL, the Kochi chapter of Young Indians (Yi), an affiliate of the Confederation of Indian Industry and the Institute for Transportation & Development Policy.
Focal point
The events focus on women, their mobility needs and the importance of sustainable public transport. The message of safe, accessible and convenient transport for women will be promoted