International study to explore how digital mobility apps could improve transport for women and caregivers

A new prototype mobility app that considers the barriers to transport faced by women and carers will be created as part of a research project co-led by a UWE Bristol researcher.

Dr Eda Beyazit, Senior Research Fellow in Active Travel and Micromobility, is the UK lead on an international project called Reimagining Digital Mobility Platforms: Co-designing Gender-Responsive and Care-Aware Mobility Solutions (DigiCaRe).

The two-year study will focus on the transport system in Istanbul, Türkiye, and will consider how a new mobility app might be able to suggest safe routes, less crowded buses, accessible railway stations, playgrounds en route when travelling with children, and rest areas when needing a break or accompanying an older relative.

Dr Beyazit, an academic in the School of Architecture and Environment, said: “While these features may seem basic, they are not integrated into digital mobility platforms that optimise routes for an idealised user. This highlights a gap between digital transport technologies and the everyday realities of diverse users, which this project seeks to address by exploring what needs to be optimised, and for whom.

“Navigating a city can be challenging, especially for individuals with intersecting social and demographic disadvantages, whose mobility needs are often overlooked by authorities.

“Women are disproportionately affected due to social reproduction burdens, concerns around transport safety and personal security, cultural codes, and physical constraints during pregnancy.

“Evidence from Istanbul, the focus of this research, demonstrates that women feel less safe on public transport than men and have concerns about security both during the day and at night. They also lack confidence and independence in navigating the city.”

Dr Beyazit received funding for the project through the British Council’s Research Collaborations Programme under the UK’s International Science Partnerships Fund. Of the 174 projects considered for funding for collaboration between the UK and Türkiye, only four were successful.

The researcher said that while technology is central to the project, it also aims to raise awareness of gender inequalities in transport and the lack of integration between mobility systems and care-related infrastructure.

DigiCaRe will examine how mobility platforms can better respond to the everyday needs of people who travel for caregiving responsibilities, including those travelling with children, accompanying older relatives, caring for younger relatives with disabilities, or meeting needs such as accessing facilities including toilets and baby-changing spaces.

A dataset focused on gender and care-related mobility will be developed during the study which will then be used to create a prototype intelligent mobility app, demonstrating how digital tools can support more inclusive and accessible urban navigation for people with diverse needs.

The project is bringing together researchers from transport geography, computational science and creative technologies at UWE Bristol, along with geospatial engineering experts at Gebze Technical University, Türkiye.

Dr Beyazit said: “I’m truly delighted to receive this prestigious award from the British Council, which not only prioritises equality, diversity and inclusion – placing gender at its core – but also supports the use of AI to transform technologies through collaboration between academic institutions.

“I hope this project will help reshape digital mobility tools to better respond to care needs, while generating solutions that can be adapted in cities beyond Istanbul.”