Free bus rides improved women’s mobility by 23%, but 77% passengers feel unsafe after 5pm: Report

New Delhi
In the five years since the launch of a scheme allowing women to avail of free bus rides in Delhi, women have reported that they travel 23% more due to increased savings, according to a report by Greenpeace India released on Tuesday.
The report also highlighted several challenges, chief among them being 77% of women feeling unsafe in buses after 5pm due to poor lighting, bus frequency, and harassment due to rush in boarding the buses. The report also flagged service reliability concerns as only 21% felt buses arrive on time.
“The fare-free bus travel scheme has significantly reduced transportation costs for women, with 75% reporting savings on transport. Of these, 67% now spend less than ₹1,000 per month. Women are redirecting these savings in various ways: 54% toward household expenses, 50% for emergencies, 33% for personal purchases, and 15% toward health care and education,” the report said.
Greenpeace India’s executive Aakiz Farooq said the report is based on a sample survey of 510 women from across the city, besides personal interviews with 30 women bus users conducted between February and April.
The report titled “Riding the Justice Route; Free Bus Travel as a Step Towards Gender- Just Public Transport in Delhi” was released at an event on Tuesday, given that the free bus ride scheme completed five years in October 2024. The Delhi government allowed women to travel in all Delhi government buses free of cost using a free pink ticket issued to them when they board the buses —a single-journey free travel pass. According to government estimates, women have availed of over 1.75 billion rides in its 7,600 public buses.
“Since its implementation in October 2019 – 23% of women who previously used buses reported more frequent travel, while 15% of women who rarely or never used buses are now regular users. Overall, 25% of women have increased their bus usage due to the scheme. The report also explores how the Pink Ticket has helped reduce involuntary immobility,” the report said.
According to the report, despite improved mobility, 14% of low-income women reported facing insults from male passengers. “Around 77% of women feel unsafe when using buses after 5pm due to poor lighting and bus frequency, with many experiencing harassment while travelling or waiting for buses. When the bus halts at the stop, people rush to board the bus. Women say that men take this as an opportunity to ‘push’, ‘touch’, ‘grope’ and ‘lean’ on them. This kind of harassment continues inside the bus; the women who travel standing are often the victims as buses are crowded,” the report said.
Amit Bhatt, managing director of International Council on Clean Transportation, said: “The free bus rides for women has led to a marked increase in female ridership. For the scheme to have maximum impact there is a need to enhance public bus infrastructure, expand the fleet, boost last mile connectivity, and provide reliable, safe, accessible, and well-connected services. The government must ensure that women feel safe and comfortable while travelling in the buses, such steps would only encourage more women mobility and ultimately lead to greater use of public transport which will in turn play a role in addressing vehicular pollution, checking traffic congestion.”