Background The Sustainable Development Goals prioritise safety for women in all domains of life, including transport. Safety in transport for women in necessary for participation of women in education and employment. From a trip perspective, the safety of travel involves both the safety of the mode in general (road safety), and personal safety (violence, assaults, harassment). However there is little research into women’s experiences and perceptions of safety while travelling by road from this combined perspective.

Objective To report preliminary results of questionnaires and in-depth interviews currently underway in Cambodia and Bangladesh on women’s experiences and perceptions of safety when paying to travel by road for education or employment.

Methods Women (200 each) on major routes in Phnom Penh (Cambodia) and Dhaka (Bangladesh) are being approached by female interviewers and (if aged at least 18 and pay for transport to get to work or education) asked questions about their experiences and perceptions of safety when they travel. The questionnaires were checked via back translation before use. In-depth interviews with 20 women in each city are being conducted. Research is under way and data collection will be completed before the conference.

Findings Preliminary analyses will be reported: basic demographics; work/education trip data; modes preferred/avoided and safety types relevant; perceptions of safety and experiences of violence or discrimination; and suggestions for improvement.

Conclusion The findings will provide a picture of the scale and patterns of paid travel by women to work or education in the two cities, and their experiences and perceptions of safety and impact on education and work access.

Policy implications The data will form a snapshot of current issues that need to be addressed in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals in relation to safety of women in transport, and a baseline against which progress can be evaluated.