Steer and TfL working to end violence against women and girls on public transport in Bangladesh

• Transport for London (TfL) is working with Steer, a global transport consultancy, and the Shakti Foundation, a Bangladeshi women’s rights NGO, to improve the safety of women and girls on buses in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
• The vast majority of women and girls report experiencing sexual harassment when riding the bus in Dhaka.
• This impacts not just their mobility but also their access to jobs and their personal finances.
• TfL and its partners are now conducting research to better understand the extent of the challenge, help identify root causes and support stakeholders to develop locally tailored interventions.

The Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka is home to more than 10 million women and girls, a figure that is predicted to increase in the coming decades as the population overall grows. 

Women and girls frequently face discrimination and harassment on public transport, including the city’s extensive bus network. Without addressing these issues, any bus-focused project risks excluding women from the economic and social benefits they bring. 

Sexual harassment on public transport in Dhaka is extremely common and often normalised. TfL is now formally working with Steer and its local partners, including Bangladeshi Women’s Rights NGO Shakti Foundation, to conduct research to better understand the extent of the challenge, help identify root causes and support stakeholders to develop locally tailored interventions. 

Initial findings show that the vast majority of women travelling by bus have experienced some form of sexual harassment. Women also report frequently being refused entry to buses, especially at busy times. Not only does this have a significant effect on women’s mobility, limiting their opportunities, but it also means some women feel forced to choose more expensive forms of transport, such as auto rickshaws.

Transport for London has already been working with Dhaka North City Corporation since 2023 on improving traffic management and bus operations on a pilot corridor in the centre of the city. A Green Cities, Infrastructure and Energy partner (GCIEP),  TfL consulted with additional stakeholders during a visit to Dhaka last July (including Shakti Foundation) and introduced a new project focused on ending violence and aggression against women and girls.

The survey results are now being analysed and will be shared with the UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO). TfL is planning to build on these findings by supporting Dhaka North City Corporation and other local stakeholders to develop tailored interventions to improve the safety and security of women and girls travelling on public transport in Dhaka. 

Throughout the project, TfL will be providing capacity building and sharing key lessons learned from their own experience in ending violence against women and girls in the UK. In the next phase of this work, TfL is also looking to work with the FCDO to apply GCIEP’s new Gender Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion Lens Toolkit to this work.

This project shows what can happen when a broad spectrum of organisations come together. TfL’s partnerships with Steer and its local partners are bringing valuable local expertise. TfL has also engaged with the World Bank and the Swedish Embassy, both of which are tackling issues of discrimination and violence against women and girls, to share lessons learned and to ensure that the projects are aligned.

Togethe,r we can raise awareness of the pressing issue of violence against women and girls. By enhancing knowledge of the specific barriers facing women and girls on public transport in Dhaka, and helping inform the development of locally tailored solutions.