Bus services for women only, to curb sexual harassment on public transport, are infeasible, experts say.
Public buses in Hanoi are always crowded
Hanoi authorities are considering "women-only" bus routes to counter sexual harassment on public transport after a recent survey by the Research Centre for Gender, and Family and Environment in Development, of 2,046 people in Hanoi and HCM City, found that 31 percent of respondents felt they were at risk on public buses.
Dr. Trinh Hoa Binh, director of the Centre for Social Opinions under the Institute of Sociology, said segregated buses indicated care for the safety of women. And the operation of such buses implies the seriousness of sexual harassment in Vietnam. But, Binh added, the situation is not as serious as the survey implies.
“The bus route classification for men and women can lead to the thought of gender inequality in the country,” Binh noted.
Binh said narrow roads and a lack of parking in Vietnam's cities were a constraint on increasing urban bus services.
Dr. Dinh Thi Thanh Binh, from the Institute for Transportation Planning and Management, said that while it would be possible to designate urban railway carriages as "women only", as has been done in many countries, the bus system in Hanoi made it problematic to increase the number of routes for the specific use of women during peak traffic times.
She was also concerned about the cost to the Hanoi city budget to support additional routes and urged greater public awareness of proper behaviour on public transport, and of women on how to protect themselves from harassment.
A representative from Hanoi Transport Corporation (Transerco) said his company will intensify measures to mitigate sexual harassments on bus. The company maintains and advertises on its buses hotline numbers ad email details to handle any complaints.
