Safe Safar is a campaign that works on promoting safe public transport options for women & girls in the city of Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. The group since its inception has worked with university students, Government bodies, volunteers and the larger civil society to reclaim city spaces for women and create a sense of safety and equality in the city. Across the country, women face many challenges in
accessing public transport. Problems such as teasing or sexual harassment and verbal abuse are widespread, especially in large cities. To understand this problem in the city of Lucknow, we undertook a baseline study of the shared Autos and tempos which are the most common mode of transportation in the city. Through this survey we tried to understand the attitudes and behavior of the auto drivers on the issue of women’s safety. We also spoke to women commuters across the spectrum and tried to understand their personal experiences. The women polled shared how these negative experiences affect their personal lives as well as their social outlook. The survey also came up with facts such as, lack of knowledge about helpline numbers and avenues to register complaints. Through this extensive baseline survey we have learnt the multiple factors that are creating this unsafe environment for women. With our knowledge of the problem and its challenges we have started a campaign with the auto drivers and we are working towards sensitizing them about gender based violence, laws related to street sexual harassment and creating a personal sense of ownership of ‘My vehicle is safe’
Safe Safar currently reaches out to almost 2000 number of campaigners in Lucknow. University students, teaching faculty, government departments, Auto drivers and women commuters are all lending their voice to the right to safe access to public transport.
