I went out for a ride with my big kid bike gang last night and once again was struck by the gender gap in our cycling group. Out of 24 people, only 7 were women. Sometimes, the disparities are even greater.
It’s a pretty casual bunch of people mostly between the ages of about 30 and 60, and most of them are strong advocates for everyday cycling (a demographic that includes a lot of people who identify as women). So why aren’t the women out for a ride?
Among my friends, some of it boils down to child care. Even with a supportive partner, getting an evening away from the kids to go ride a bike can be difficult. If your kids are big enough to ride on their own, they may not be up to riding to a distant start point and home again after the ride. If they are younger, they might be easy to carry on a cargo bike, but their bedtime falls in the middle of the ride.
There may be other reasons keeping women away, or they don’t even know about our rides. Or they know and just aren’t comfortable joining us. I admit that I was intimidated about showing up for a ride around town with a bunch of strangers the first time I went.
If this happens to women who love riding bikes and use them for transportation every day, imagine what it’s like for women who are more fearful about their safety, more intimidated by harassment and close passes, or who simply don’t have the same opportunities as boys and men to ride bikes at all.
This Shifter YouTube video is an excellent summary of the issues, with their sources in the description.
Have you noticed similar disparities where you live? What has worked to help change that? I would love to hear your ideas.