{"id":73276,"date":"2025-03-05T06:21:03","date_gmt":"2025-03-05T05:21:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/?p=73276"},"modified":"2025-07-02T09:32:09","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T07:32:09","slug":"buses-are-free-for-women-in-delhi-what-can-the-world-learn-from-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/story\/73276\/buses-are-free-for-women-in-delhi-what-can-the-world-learn-from-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Buses are free for women in Delhi: What can the world learn from it?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Delhi, one of the world&#8217;s largest and fastest-growing cities, is proving that beyond movement, public transport is about justice, inclusion, and empowerment. To commemorate International Women\u2019s Day, the <a href=\"https:\/\/linktr.ee\/systemshiftpodcast\">SystemShift<\/a>, a Greenpeace podcast that explores how we can move from a world that serves the economy to an economy that works for people and the planet, launched a new episode with the extraordinary model of Delhi where women are passing from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-asia-india-64810339\">not stepping outside home<\/a> to using public transport freely.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Buses are Free for Women in Delhi: What Can the World Learn From That?\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/pML0AgrBTBI?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>A turnaround for Delhi&#8217;s Women<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Women\u2019s participation in the workforce is low in India, with women representing only <a href=\"https:\/\/dge.gov.in\/dge\/sites\/default\/files\/2023-03\/AnnualReportPLFS2021-22F_0.pdf\">a third of the workforce<\/a>. <em>\u201cThere&#8217;s a very small window where women actually feel entitled to go out in this kind of culture where mobility for women is extremely limited,\u201d<\/em> said Nishant Singh, researcher and member of the Public Transport Forum Delhi, in the podcast.<\/p>\n\n<p>Since 2019, Delhi&#8217;s groundbreaking initiative to provide free bus travel for women has transformed lives, increasing employment opportunities for women. The city of Delhi was the first state\/UT in India to offer free public bus transport for women across all age groups and social classes.<\/p>\n\n<p>By 2024, the scheme had issued 100 crore pink tickets, significantly increasing women&#8217;s bus usage and reducing their transport expenses. As a result, 25% of women who never used buses before now ride regularly, gaining independence and access to jobs, education, and opportunities, with 15% being new regular users, as shown by a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-india-stateless\/2024\/10\/c293ab29-riding-the-justice-route-1-compressed.pdf\">recent report by Greenpeace India<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<p>With Delhi projected to become the <a href=\"https:\/\/population.un.org\/wup\/\">world\u2019s largest city by 2030<\/a>, its public transport policies have global significance. \u201cWhen public transport is safe, affordable, and accessible, women can participate more in public life, strengthening both people and economies. The success in Delhi underscores the power of mobility to shift social norms\u201d, said Yewande Omotoso, SystemShift podcast host.<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>\u201cPink Tax\u201d: The hidden cost women pay for public transport<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>High fares disproportionately affect historically marginalised communities. In Brazil, for instance, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.itdp.org\/2022\/08\/12\/exploring-the-intersection-of-race-and-mobility-in-brazil\/\">research by the ITDP<\/a> showed that Black, Brown and low-income Brazilians pay higher fares, use more overcrowded buses and trains, and have fewer transport options available to help them reach essential destinations.<\/p>\n\n<p>Safety on and around public transport remains a significant concern for women and LGBTQIA+ communities, often making travel less accessible and limiting opportunities. Research highlights a clear gender gap in perceived safety: on average, <a href=\"https:\/\/academic.oup.com\/jrsssa\/article\/183\/3\/737\/7056467\">women feel 10% less safe than men when using metro systems<\/a> and 6% less safe on buses.<\/p>\n\n<p>In response to safety concerns, many women and LGBTQIA+ individuals choose more expensive travel options, such as taxis or indirect routes, to feel safer. This leads to additional, <a href=\"https:\/\/openknowledge.worldbank.org\/server\/api\/core\/bitstreams\/411c4adc-7856-500e-a203-9e1b8f81d1b3\/content\">hidden transport costs<\/a>. A <a href=\"https:\/\/wagner.nyu.edu\/files\/faculty\/publications\/Pink%20Tax%20Report%2011_13_18.pdf\">study from New York University\u2019s Rudin Center<\/a> identified this phenomenon as the \u2018pink tax\u2019\u2014a financial penalty tied to safety concerns. According to the study, women interviewed spent an average of $26 to $50 more per month than men to travel safely around the city.<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Public transport improves gender equality, air quality, and democracy<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>The Indian capital faces a severe air pollution crisis, with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thelancet.com\/journals\/lanplh\/article\/PIIS2542-5196%2824%2900114-1\/fulltext\">11.5% of all deaths linked to pollution\u2014around 12,000 lives lost each year<\/a>. More and more accessible public transport can reduce car usage and emissions, improving air quality and public health.<\/p>\n\n<p>As results show in the Delhi scheme, free and affordable public transport enables more people to engage with their communities and access opportunities. As Nishant notes, <em>\u201cDemocracy will be strengthened. That\u2019s something that is usually not part of mobility discussions, but there will be value changes in society.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n<p><em>\u201cDelhi\u2019s progress is a powerful reminder: Investing in public transport means investing in women, in democracy, in clean air, and in a just and sustainable future for all. Solutions for Delhi are solutions for every city facing the twin crises of inequality and pollution\u201d<\/em>, concluded Yewande.<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What\u2019s our role as individuals? What can we do?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Here are some concrete things you can do:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>This text was inspired by the SystemShift podcast, which you can listen to on <a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/gb\/podcast\/systemshift\/id1683278976\">Apple Podcasts<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/2W1vJNi3XbZNAeE2IBqpam\">Spotify<\/a>, or watch on <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/pML0AgrBTBI?feature=shared\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/pML0AgrBTBI?feature=shared\">YouTube<\/a> with multilingual subtitles.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If you live in India, <a href=\"https:\/\/gpin.greenpeace.org\/fare-free-future?utm_source=Drishti&amp;utm_medium=influnencer&amp;utm_campaign=fare_free_future&amp;fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaasTV849Do5nTmiuGuFc5AjQzKQPy4mm8aD6ATJABDL1q_-PeFB_7YyAdc_aem_ULDb6vf1_9c9IskoMM5Z6w\">share your thoughts on public buses<\/a>. Greenpeace India is on a mission to make public transport smooth, safe, and free, especially for women and transgender individuals.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Have a look at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/vision-for-sustainable-mobility\/\">Greenpeace Mobility Vision<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If you live in an area with proposed changes to transport, like a new bicycle lane, or bus stop, be noisy about your support. <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Support transport workers when they are struggling for better working conditions and investment in public transport.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-greenpeace-international wp-block-embed-greenpeace-international\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"wjhTu81yH3\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/podcasts\/73270\/transcript-buses-are-free-for-women-in-delhi-what-can-the-world-learn-from-that\/\">Transcript: Buses are free for women in Delhi: what can the world learn from that?<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"&#8220;Transcript: Buses are free for women in Delhi: what can the world learn from that?&#8221; &#8212; Greenpeace International\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/podcasts\/73270\/transcript-buses-are-free-for-women-in-delhi-what-can-the-world-learn-from-that\/embed\/#?secret=UwC72R7DQF#?secret=wjhTu81yH3\" data-secret=\"wjhTu81yH3\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>To commemorate International Women\u2019s Day, the SystemShift, a Greenpeace podcast that explores how we can move from a world that serves the economy to an economy that works for people and the planet, launched a new episode with the extraordinary model of Delhi, India, where women are passing from not stepping outside home to using public transport freely. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":190,"featured_media":73277,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_planet4_optimize_post_is_variant":false,"_planet4_optimize_experiment_name":"","_planet4_optimize_variant_name":"","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"p4_og_title":"","p4_og_description":"To commemorate International Women\u2019s Day, the SystemShift, a Greenpeace podcast that explores how we can move from a world that serves the economy to an economy that works for people and the planet, launched a new episode with the extraordinary model of Delhi, India, where women are passing from not stepping outside home to using public transport freely. \n","p4_og_image":"","p4_og_image_id":"","p4_seo_canonical_url":"","p4_campaign_name":"","p4_local_project":"","p4_basket_name":"","p4_department":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[73],"tags":[121,130,91],"p4-page-type":[59],"class_list":["post-73276","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-social-and-economic-systems","tag-system-shift","tag-alternative-futures","tag-health","p4-page-type-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73276","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/190"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=73276"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73276\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":76541,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73276\/revisions\/76541"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/73277"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73276"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=73276"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=73276"},{"taxonomy":"p4-page-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/p4-page-type?post=73276"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}