On the eve of International Women’s Day, Victoria lobby group, the Committee for Melbourne, is pushing for gender equality in the form of… traffic walking signs.
According to The Herald Sun, The Equal Crossings initiative, which begins this week, will see red and green pedestrian figures installed at the intersection of Flinders and Swanston streets.
The lobby group’s hope is that male and female traffic signals will be equally strewn across the state.
“Unconscious bias reinforces stereotypes and influences daily decisions and attitudes,” says Committee for Melbourne’s CEO Martine Letts.
“The Equal Crossings initiative will draw our attention to these issues in a practical and positive way.”
However, the movement has been met with political criticism, with some – namely, men – saying this is not the best use of the state government’s resources, despite Equal Crossings working off the gradual replacement of existing lights as part of ongoing maintenance.
“I’m all for doing anything we can for gender equity, but really?” says Lord Mayor Robert Doyle.
“Unfortunately, I think this sort of costly exercise is more likely to bring derision.”
Others have also said that the time and effort spent on this project could be better used to fix congestion on Victorian roads.
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