Abstract
Inequity in access is created when infrastructure and services are created for the de-fault 'generic user'. Mobility has long been a key factor in empowerment of women, defining how women navigate their personal and professional lives. The number of women using public buses in India has remained low. Policy formulation for large populations is driven by statistical analysis and data models that do not account for marginalized groups. The present toolkit used to develop the comprehensive mobility plan for Indian cities lacks the tools to elicit tacit needs and requirements of such citizens. To address this gap, we designed a tangible toolkit to evolve a context-sensitive participatory design research methodology for public transport that aids requirement capture of user predicaments and aspirations. This paper details the methodology followed in the development of the toolkit, including selection of design considerations, materials and processes, design iterations and refinements after pilot study.
Keywords
participatory toolkit; public transport; requirement capture
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.1321
Citation
Dhaundiyal, D., and Sharma, N. (2024) Missing the bus: A toolkit for amplifying unheard voices of women commuters in India, in Gray, C., Ciliotta Chehade, E., Hekkert, P., Forlano, L., Ciuccarelli, P., Lloyd, P. (eds.), DRS2024: Boston, 23–28 June, Boston, USA. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.1321
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Conference Track
Research Paper
Included in
Missing the bus: A toolkit for amplifying unheard voices of women commuters in India
Inequity in access is created when infrastructure and services are created for the de-fault 'generic user'. Mobility has long been a key factor in empowerment of women, defining how women navigate their personal and professional lives. The number of women using public buses in India has remained low. Policy formulation for large populations is driven by statistical analysis and data models that do not account for marginalized groups. The present toolkit used to develop the comprehensive mobility plan for Indian cities lacks the tools to elicit tacit needs and requirements of such citizens. To address this gap, we designed a tangible toolkit to evolve a context-sensitive participatory design research methodology for public transport that aids requirement capture of user predicaments and aspirations. This paper details the methodology followed in the development of the toolkit, including selection of design considerations, materials and processes, design iterations and refinements after pilot study.