It’s not just over-priced razors that cut into a woman’s funds. It’s transportation, too.
A new study from NYU’s Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management finds that women spend on average about $1,200 more than men each year on taxis or ride shares over fears about their safety on public transportation.
The extra cash falls in what the researchers call a “pink tax,” or the extra money women spend on items simply because they are women — such as pastel-colored razors that cost more than razors marketed to men, or tampons.
Products for women cost an average of 7 percent more than male-marketed products, according to a 2015 New York City Department of Consumer Affairs study.
The same is true for women getting around the city, the study found. About 30 percent of the women in the survey said they don’t take public transportation late at night over fear of harassment, theft or assault — something that 75 percent of the women say they’ve already experienced on public transportation, compared to just 47 percent of men.
Only 15 percent of the women report feeling safe on the subway or buses.
The financial impact is worse for people who are responsible for others, such as a baby or dependent relative — and the majority of those people are women, the study says. Those caregivers say they spend an extra $75 on transportation each month.
Study authors tell Wired that the MTA should consider ways to make women feel safer, such as hiring more attendants — and better yet, women attendants.



