Introduction

In the last decade, there has been a surge in the number of personal safety apps aimed at enhancing the safety of women and girls (McCarthy et al.,2016; Maxwell et al., 2020). Personal safety apps (hereafter apps) have a multitude of uses: alerting others to an emergency, identifying hotspot areas, tracking journeys, collecting audio and video evidence of harassment, raising awareness and signposting users to support organisations (Gekoski et al., 2015). The use of apps to tackle violence against women and girls (VAWG) has been endorsed by both the UK and Scottish governments, however most academic literature has focussed on the use of apps in specific contexts with prominent examples including: to target intimate partner violence and for the use on university campuses. Few studies have looked at the use of apps in the public space, and even less has been written about the use of apps for women on public transport, bar a few notable exceptions (McCarthy et al., 2016; Maxwell et al., 2020).

A 2023 report looking at the experiences of women and girls on public transport in Scotland, found that women reported feeling unsafe ‘very often’ or ‘always,’ particularly when travelling at nighttime (Transport Scotland, 2023). Issues around unwanted attention, antisocial behaviour, harassment, verbal abuse, physical assault and being followed were cited as concerns among women (Transport Scotland, 2023). The report produced 10 recommendations, one of which was to raise awareness of the technology that currently exists to enhance the safety of women and girls on public transport (Transport Scotland, 2023).

This follow-up report was carried out as part of an internship with Transport Scotland, Transport Strategy and Analysis. It seeks to explore literature around the use of apps for use in public spaces, particularly on public transport. The intention is not to consider specific apps, rather it is to look at the literature around the availability of apps, their safety features and how they are used. This will help map the current landscape of apps in the UK.

The report has three aims:

  • To map the typologies of apps available for women and girls in the public space/public transport.
  • To identify current themes in academic literature around the use of apps in public spaces and to identify gaps in literature.
  • To consider policy and governance implications arising.

Review of Literature

Literature reviewed for the report was based on a search for key literature produced in the last 10 years in OECD countries. However, significant, large-scale studies involving personal safety apps produced out with this timeframe, or out with the OECD, were also included. The search terms used to generate initial literature are cited below. Keywords were taken from the UK government’s definition of public safety.

Resources Searched

  • Idox
  • KandE
  • Knowledge Network
  • ProQuest
  • National Library of Scotland Catalogue
  • Google Scholar
  • Google Custom Search

Keywords/Search strategy

  • Personal safety app (application)
  • Public space
  • Women
  • Transport
  • Harassment
  • Unwanted sexual behaviour

Background: Policy context

Violence against women and girls (VAWG) affects nearly one in three women worldwide (WHO, 2021). In 2013, the UN Commission on the Status of Women called on all world governments to take preventative measures to tackle sexual harassment and other forms of sexual violence in public spaces. The Equally Safe strategy (Scottish Government, 2016) recognises that being free from gender-based violence is a fundamental human right and one of the strategy’s core objectives is the primary prevention of VAWG. Equally Safe (Scottish Government, 2016) recognises that women experience higher levels of fear for their personal safety in public spaces. Studies have shown that this ‘fear or victimisation’ (Loukaitou-Sideris, 2014) impacts on women’s mobility patterns and in turn their participation in public life (UN Women, 2017).

Scotland’s National Transport Strategy 2 (NTS2) (Scottish Government, 2020) recognises that transport plays a key role in the production of equal rights: allowing people to access education, work and participation in public life. The NTS2 aligns with Scotland’s National Performance Framework (NPF) and the related Sustainable Development Goals around health and wellbeing, gender equality, sustainable cities and climate change (UN, 2015). The fear and reality of gender-based violence impacts on how women and girls use public transport and tackling VAWG is a key priority for the Scottish government.