Gender Equality as a Subsidiary Objective of Swedish Transport Policy: What Has Happened Since 2004?

At the 3rd International Conference on Women’s Issues in Transportation in Chicago 2004, the author presented a paper on the background and reasons why Sweden has a gender-equality objective in the transport sector. This paper describes what has happened since then in the political arena and in the implementation process in government agencies and other stakeholders and on the effect in planning and building new infrastructure and maintaining the existing infrastructure. The author analyzed government bills on transport policy, how proposals in the bills were formulated in the annual government guidelines for transport agencies, and how the transport agencies—especially the National Rail Administration (Banverket) and the Swedish Road Administration (Vägverket)—responded to the proposals and reported to the government in the annual sectoral report. There has been progress in the National Rail Administration and the Swedish Road Administration throughout the period from 2004 to 2009. Awareness has increased, and the discussion about gender equality in planning infrastructure is more mature, even if the results in the transport system are not evident. On the other hand, there is concern about how the decision on new transport policy objectives in spring 2009 will influence progress toward a gender-equal transport system. Also important is the change in how annual government guidelines are formulated and how it will affect transport agencies’ work toward gender equality. Another issue is the ongoing reorganization in Sweden, where transport agencies are divided and reassembled. How this change will influence gender equality in the transport system is not clear.

Language

  • English

Media Info

  • Media Type: Print
  • Features: Figures; References;
  • Pagination: pp 225-235
  • Monograph Title: Women's Issues in Transportation: Summary of the 4th International Conference. Volume 2: Technical Papers
  • Serial:

Subject/Index Terms

Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 01339644
  • Record Type: Publication
  • ISBN: 9780309160834
  • Files: TRIS, TRB
  • Created Date: May 11 2011 2:21PM