No option to un-select the creepy alleys on your map app

Phone apps can warn users of road tolls, freeways, hills and stairs but when it comes to walking safe at night, there’s no option to un-select the creepy alleys and dark, lonely streets.

One solution? Belinda Mackay, an urban planner, prefers to walk next to a main road, which she says is more likely to have good lighting.

“If you’re going to a new area, and Google Maps tells you it’s a five-minute walk from the train station to where you need to go, there’s no way of knowing that pathway that’s being suggested is well-lit,” she said.

The Safe Streets for Women and Girls project is an initiative by Zonta Club of Brisbane, University of Queensland and Queensland Walks.Credit: Jennifer Hillhouse, Queensland Walks

“You might find that, actually, the route suggested doesn’t look particularly safe, so you’re trying to then have to make a decision, mid-trip, on how to continue your journey while feeling safe.

“I’m following Google Maps, and I’m like, oh, down that alleyway? I think not actually – let’s try another route.”

Urban planner Belinda Mackay, who is also on the board of Queensland Walks.

DemosAU research reveals 84 per cent of Queensland women feel unsafe walking or running alone at night, compared with 47 per cent of men.

“It also shows that younger women and women aged above 55 are particularly concerned about safety, actively avoiding walking home or catching public transport because they don’t feel safe,” DemosAU spokeswoman Casey-Ann Seaniger said.

And as thousands of fans descend on Brisbane’s Caxton Street and Suncorp Stadium for the Women’s State of Origin and NRL Magic Round from Thursday, a group of volunteers will walk the streets nearby as part of a project to identify issues that need fixing to increase safety for women and girls, known as the Safe Streets Night Walk.

Previous walks identified a need for better lighting and more people in quieter areas of South Bank, while ideas from a walk at Zillmere included wider paths, tidier gardens, phone charging stations, public art and food trucks.

Female fans we spoke to on Thursday morning near Suncorp Stadium said they generally felt safe after a game while walking with the crowd and their friends in the inner-city suburb of Milton.

But two women said they avoided walking through parks or “anything that looks a little bit dodgy”, like an underground passage, train stations, and dark and quiet areas.

Queensland Walks executive officer Anna Campbell said improvements could be made around Suncorp Stadium, including well-designed lighting in the right places and activation of spaces outside event days.

For example, a lift nearby does not operate 24/7.

“I was really surprised to notice that the lift up to the mezzanine level as a way to cross over Milton Road bridge is only available on event days and times,” Campbell said.

“While I understand why this has occurred, for anyone with mobility issues, the alternate route is long and hostile.”

Alternative options add an extra 300 metres, involve crossing busy roads and narrow footpaths.

“Better-designed streets will encourage more people into the environment and that’s what makes women feel more safe – having more people walking or running at night as safety in numbers,” Campbell said.

Away from the bright inner-city lights, Mackay said options for a run after dark were more limited.

She said in the lead-up the 2032 Olympic Games, Brisbane would become a more “lively city” if more people felt safe to exercise outdoors once the sun went down.

“It’s not just women and girls that benefit from safe spaces,” she said.

Brisbane City Council this week announced 26 new mobile safety cameras, adding to a network of more than 3800 fixed safety cameras, including new cameras at Milton Common Park, Musgrave Park at West End and Inala Plaza bus station.

Suncorp Stadium was contacted for comment.

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