Journal article 1257 views 148 downloads
Changing women's lives and livelihoods: motorcycle taxis in rural Liberia and Sierra Leone
,
Paul Richards
Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Transport, Volume: 173, Issue: 2, Pages: 132 - 143
Swansea University Author:
Krijn Peters
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DOI (Published version): 10.1680/jtran.18.00162
Abstract
In rural Liberia and Sierra Leone about half of motorcycle taxi passengers are female, with this proportion increasing on market days. However, all motorcycle taxi operators in rural areas are male. This study assessed if and how motorcycle taxis have contributed to the livelihoods of rural women an...
| Published in: | Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Transport |
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| ISSN: | 0965-092X 1751-7710 |
| Published: |
Thomas Telford Ltd.
2020
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| Online Access: |
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| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa51812 |
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| Abstract: |
In rural Liberia and Sierra Leone about half of motorcycle taxi passengers are female, with this proportion increasing on market days. However, all motorcycle taxi operators in rural areas are male. This study assessed if and how motorcycle taxis have contributed to the livelihoods of rural women and whether there is appetite among them to become operators themselves. Data were gathered through male and female focus group discussions, roadside traffic counts and operator and passenger surveys. The study was conducted in three districts in rural Sierra Leone and one rural county in Liberia. The Liberia field site was the location of a pioneering pilot project on upgrading footpaths to motorcycle-accessible tracks. This project, funded by a German development agency, aimed to connect remote villages to the feeder road network. Both men and women were involved in track construction and this study assessed whether the women's involvement made them more likely to take up commercial motorcycle riding. Women nearly universally praised rural motorcycle taxis, indicating that they have made access to markets and (maternal) health much easier. However, while many expressed the desire to become operators themselves, they identified a number of barriers, the most significant being lack of friends or business persons willing to rent motorcycles to female operators. |
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| Keywords: |
developing countries, infrastructure planning, unpaved roads |
| Issue: |
2 |
| Start Page: |
132 |
| End Page: |
143 |