Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok has reserved an entire floor of one of its parking garages for women who travel alone or who are traveling with a child under 12.
This begs the question, how many women and children are being attacked in the airport’s parking lot that the airport administration felt a need to reserve a separate section – accommodating 450 cars – for this?
Or is this a security-related measure at all? Several fellow travelers discussing this topic in the Australian Frequent Flyer forums presume so, but the article doesn’t offer a reason for the segmented parking section.
Of course, there are a couple of other ideas floating around as well as to why the airport would take this step:
Reduce all the reverse parallel parking incidents. ~Gold Member
Better lighting so its easier to do make-up while cruising for a spot. lol ~eric2011
Blokes will be blokes.
According to the article, if the reserved parking section proves successful Suvarnabhumi Airport likely won’t be the only airport in Thailand to offer a women-only parking section.
Again, it begs the question, what does success look like? Fewer attacks on women and children as they are making their way from their cars to the airport? An increase in women travelers who fly out of the airport? An increase in men flying out of the airport as there is less risk of being bumped into by a reverse parallel parking woman? (Sorry, I had to go there … I am a bloke after all).
I would be curious to hear from women in the comments section below. How do you feel about segmented parking sections for women? Would you use them?
And men, how do you feel about it?
I have to admit that part of me feels like, if the security problem in the parking lot is bad enough to prompt this move, I’m not really sure I would feel comfortable parking there either. My technical qualification as a male does not mean I am capable of warding off any attacker, or group of attackers? And what if I were a father traveling with my wife and kids? Should they only be protected when they are flying without me?
Maybe the answer to this particular security problem, again assuming that is what has motivated this move, isn’t to move only the most vulnerable closer to the building. Maybe the answer is to provide better protection to all of your customers who are running the gauntlet from the outer lots.
Read the thread in its entirety: ‘Women only’ parking at Suvarnabhumi
I see a huge benefit for providing a special (closer) parking area for parents traveling with young children. I travel a ton with our two kids both with and without my husband and it would be majorly beneficial to be able to park a little closer when I have them with me.
Between all of the stuff they require (stroller, car seats, diapers, wipes, extra suitcases) and the fact that our oldest likes to be independent and not ride in the stroller, it would be helpful and likely safer if we could park closer (and have it not be cost prohibitive).
Other than that, I don’t know if I would care much if traveling alone as long as the airport was safe in general.
I’m an American living in Bangkok. and in my opinion this measure is due to the rape and murder of a young girl that took place on a train recently. Western media don’t like admitting this, but the military junta has done a lot to combat crime and corruption. and honestly they do often seem to go overboard on most of the things they do. I believe the “powers that be” in cooperation with the AOT have drawn up the plan to show that they too are tough on crimes against females.