Urban transport provisions, planning and development in Metropolitan
Lagos is not gender sensitive. Rather, it is more masculine than being
feminist. Women, in the metropolitan area out rightly deny access to
decent, comfortable and reliable intra-urban movement services. Because
the existing system is largely unregulated, inadequate, rowdy and
characteristically unconventional. For instance, standardization in urban
transport vehicles designs and operations are virtually not considered
important by the authorities. As a result, women are manhandled, as well
as being victims of pick-pockets, muggers while transiting in the
metropolitan. And in the alternative, women do attempt long walking
hours, as well as patronizing the ubiquitous, reckless and ill-mannered
commercial motocyclists (Okada riders) at their own peril.
Notwithstanding, they are being relatively denied access to the larger
urban economic benefits.
This problem, however, persists due to the poor planning procedures in
urban transport operations in the metropolitan, as well as inexistent of
versatile and dynamic urban transport policy. However, this paper
recommends new urban planning approaches and strategies such as
compacted city design, adoption of the 3D concept (Design, Diversity,
Density) in neighbourhood planning, integrated urban transport planning,
regulated urban transport operations strongly backed with functional,
efficient and dynamic urban transport policy; strong enforcement of
vehicles designs and operational standards, as well as formation of
gender sensitive urban transport consumers association. This is with a
view to making intra-city transit operations stress-free and equitably
accessible and affordable by all irrespective of sex, so as to minimize the
level of transportation-induced urban poverty level in the metropolitan.