Travel Issues of Sri Lankan Females

Abstract

This research looks into the mobility problems that female travelers undergo, with an emphasis on Sri Lankan women. Males and females have different social and economic roles and obligations in most civilizations, and as a result, there are major gender variations in travel and transportation demands. The aim of this research is to investigate the mobility issues of females while traveling. This research analyzes mobility problems of female travelers with special reference to the Western province of Sri Lanka. This research targets to identify the mobility barriers which affect the females’ lifestyle, the problems, and threats females have faced, and the way they go through these problems. The socioeconomic, perspective of people, and travel behavior data were collected from 450 females by using a paper-based questionnaire in August 2021. Ordinal logistic regression analysis and Chi-square test were used to analyze the data. According to the results, sexual harassment while traveling was a significant problem. Among the respondents, 17% of respondents stated that sexual harassment was the most concerning security risk when traveling and 46.8% of female respondents faced sexual harassment when traveling by buses. Based on the types of harassment 26% of females experienced physical harassment as the most frequent harassment type and 25% experienced verbal harassment in public places or public transportation. Majority 42% of the females were strongly stated that they faced sexual harassment problems after dark. Poor maintenance of open public spaces, overcrowded buses/trains, lack of effective/visible police or civil guards, and lack of regulation on transport safety such as men dealing with or taking alcohol/drugs were factors that contribute to sexual harassment by females in public places and transport. The results of this analysis provide valuable insights into the mobility problems of female travelers in day-to-day life due to various reasons.