Women took the wheel and misogyny took over social media

The launch of the women-only Pink Bus in Dhaka was supposed to be a small but meaningful step towards making public transport safer for women. Instead, within hours of the announcement, social media was flooded with sexist comments, questioning whether women could even drive a bus on the road, manage passengers, or, apparently, do their job without causing a mess.

As someone who has grown up watching women uncomfortably squeeze themselves into overcrowded buses, hold onto broken railings full of rust for dear life, and constantly calculate and remain alert where to stand so that an unwanted hand does not find its way onto them, I found the mockery more disturbing than funny.

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Before mocking the pink bus, ask yourself why women in this country need a separate bus in the first place. Who is the source of the issue? Maybe, it's a privilege to laugh at something you never have to fear on a daily basis.

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A woman driver in a pink uniform behind the wheel of one of the newly introduced pink buses. Photo: Anisur Rahman/ The Daily Star

The pink bus service, operated fully by women, including its drivers and helpers, was introduced to provide women with a safer and more comfortable way to commute. Women in Dhaka have repeatedly raised their voices about harassment, insecurity, and discomfort about public transport.

A woman driving a bus somehow becomes a joke of the nation. A woman working as a helper becomes a punchline. A woman's safety becomes something to mock.

Yet, when a male driver drives recklessly every single day, a male helper misbehaves, we rarely turn the entire male population into the subject of a joke nor do we see any men talk about the issue on social media.

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According to the BRTC, the buses will start regular passenger services on designated routes in Dhaka, Narayanganj, Gazipur, Bogura and Chattogram from tomorrow. Photo: Anisur Rahman

Of course, the pink bus is not a magical solution to the larger problems of Dhaka’s public transportation for women. While acknowledging the great initiative, we also talk about safer roads, maintaining proper training and monitoring, and question how we can improve the service instead of an entire gender’s ability to do a job.

Women driving a pink bus is not about proving that they are better drivers than men. It is about proving that women deserve the opportunity to drive, work, and travel without being handled as an inconvenience.

The pink bus does not need a pink ambulance following it all day around. Perhaps what we actually need to recover from is the misogyny to are so familiar with.