Travelling on public transport when pregnant can be tough. Did you know only 60% of people believe it’s necessary to give up a seat for pregnant people on public transport? In a bid to find out how public transport and pregnancy go in hand, Mama Mio have commissioned a survey of 2000 adults living in the UK to see the statistics for ourselves...
As a result, we found out that not only do just 60% of people believe it's necessary to give their seat up to a pregnant person, the general public believe holding a door open is more important than giving up a seat for a soon‐to‐be Mama. Only 2% of people believe people in their first trimester need to be given a seat and in fact 1/5 of Mamas were too embarrassed to ask for a seat themselves. Scroll down to see the full list of results for Mamas travelling on public transport when pregnant...Having seen the survey results, we wanted to put the general public to the test. We teamed up with Anna aka Mother Pukka to find out how the British public really treat pregnant women on public transport. Wearing a fake pregnancy bump and accompanied by a secret camera, you can watch the reactions for yourself…
A study of 2,000 regular users of public transport found that:
- Only 60% of people believe it’s necessary to give up a seat for pregnant women on public transport.
- Holding a door open is more important than giving up a seat for a soon‐to‐be mother.
- The study also found adults believe you don’t need to offer mother‐to‐be a seat until she is visibly showing, with three in ten saying so.
- Eighteen percent agreed you should offer a seat during a woman’s third trimester, with eleven per cent saying you should during the second.
- And just two percent said you should offer up your seat when a woman is within her first 12 weeks of pregnancy.
- A shocking fifth of expectant mothers have been too embarrassed to ask for a seat themselves.
- One in five are afraid of who they might offend by offering up a seat on public transport, so they simply don’t bother.
- Two thirds agreed Brits are typically rude when it comes to travelling on public transport.
- More than half said commuters are impatient and so their manners fall by the wayside, with an equal number agreeing Brits are too buried in their phones.
- Fifty‐six percent reckoned it should be made clearer who is eligible for priority seating, with fifty-two per cent agreeing more posters at stations and stops would help.
- Sixty‐two percent said more posters on trams, trains and busses themselves and 60 per cent said more pictures on the seating on public transport.
So, what can we do about it?
Mama Mio believe that all expectant pregnant women should have the right to a seat, should they want it. After seeing the results of this survey we are launching our #ExpectingChange campaign. We want to provide a platform to discuss public transport etiquette, encouraging people to offer their seats to pregnant women and empowering expectant mamas to ask for a seat should they wish.
Got a story to share about being pregnant on public transport? Feel like you’re too embarrassed to ask for a seat even though you really need it? We want to hear what YOU think! Use #ExpectingChange to joint the conversation.
The experts from Mamawell tell us all about how to keep yourself fit during your pregnancy, here!
