Sunday, March 14, 2021
To celebrate International Women's Day last week, 23 sets of traffic lights across London had their green men swapped for green women. Bow Road got a set, opposite the police station. Interestingly there are at least four different designs.
The designs are inspired by the theme for International Women's Day this year to challenge norms. They depict a diverse range of women and challenge the common image of a woman in a dress to signify gender. The reimagined symbols serve as a reminder of the huge contribution women make to all aspects of society, including the transport network, and improve the visibility of women on London's streets.
They're certainly diverse, from one with a bun and high heels to one you wouldn't have known was a woman unless you'd been told. Indeed you wouldn't have known the usual design was a green man unless you'd been told, so a lot of the previous lack of diversity comes down to labelling.
Only the green men have been changed, so the red men continue to stare across the street unless someone presses the button. The green women then appear only briefly, and at less than 1% of the pedestrian crossings TfL maintain. Still, it's a start.
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