Guest column: 40 per cent of Metro passengers are female, reserve seats

When the Detailed Project Report for Phase-1 spoke of six coach trains, why did the BMRCL bring in three -coach trains, knowing the population of Bengaluru and the estimated footfall on the Metro?  And now why wait for six -coach trains to reserve one for women?

At any given point of time, the gender ratio on the Metro is 40:60, which means one- third of the riders are women. So one coach should be reserved for them right now. I suggested this to the BMRCL earlier, but it said it was not possible. Unfortunately, even when the additional coaches arrive in December, the reservation will not be implemented on all trains immediately.

On city buses the front section has been reserved for women for 27 years and it is understood that the front entrance should be used by women and the one at the centre, by men. The seats too are clearly marked for women. How hard will it be to do the same on the Metro today?

Even if there is a spillover of women into the two other coaches, which is likely, it will be safer for them on the whole. Safety is not restricted to inside the stations and trains either. What about at the intersections, where people change from bus to the railways and the Metro? For example, at the Majestic station there aren’t enough streetlights near the entrance, inviting anti-social elements to hang around much to the discomfort of  women passengers entering or exiting it. This is not the job of the BMRCL, but it can push for it.

Moreover, there are crossovers, barricades and busy signals in this area. When they dug up the whole place, why did they not build an underpass or footover bridge?. This would be useful for women. Men  can jump over the barricades and medians in front of the KSR Railway station, but how easy is it for a woman in a saree, holding a child to do the same? Why do we offer seats to women? It is not because they are vulnerable, but because they may be pregnant or holding a child.  These are simple things the BMRCL can take care of. It is a matter of common sense and it can still do it. 

The author is President, Nagarika Shakti.