5 Women Driving Change in Mobility

We've talked about the real barriers women face in transportation. Safety. Access. Design that was never built with them in mind.

Across policy, infrastructure, data, and innovation, women are reshaping how transportation works and who it works for. They are not asking for permission, they are simply building better, mor equitable systems.

And when transportation improves, everything connected to it improves too: health, education, employment, stability.

These are five women leading that shift.

Janette Sadik-Khan

Janette Sadik-Khan changed how one of the most complex cities in the world moves.

As Commissioner of the New York City Department of Transportation, she turned streets into spaces that actually serve people. Bike lanes. Pedestrian plazas. Safer corridors. Not as pilot ideas, but as real, visible infrastructure.

Her work made something clear. Transportation policy is not abstract. It shapes who feels safe, who can access opportunity, and how a city functions day to day.

If you want to understand how quickly a system can evolve when leadership is willing, her book Streetfight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution is a strong place to start.

Ellen Voie

Ellen Voie has spent her career opening doors in an industry that was never designed to welcome women.

As President and CEO of the Women in Trucking Association, she has helped thousands of women build careers in trucking. That means more than representation. It means income stability, leadership pathways, and long-term economic mobility.

She was recognized by the White House for her work, but the real impact shows up in the lives of the women who now have access to an industry that once excluded them.

When you expand who gets to participate, you expand the entire workforce.

Sandra Phillips

Sandra Phillips is solving for access at scale.

Through movmi Shared Transportation Services, she has launched more than 60 shared mobility projects around the world. Her focus is long-term sustainability paired with real access.

Shared systems lower barriers. They make it possible for more people to move through their communities without the financial burden of car ownership.

That shift matters more than most people realize. Transportation cost is often the second highest expense in a household. Change that, and you change what a family can afford, pursue, and plan for.

Anita Sengupta

Dr. Anita Sengupta is building what comes next.

After nearly two decades at NASA, she moved into the private sector to focus on sustainable transportation solutions. As founder and CEO of Hydroplane, she is working on emission-free aviation.

Her work pushes the conversation forward. Transportation is not only about solving today’s gaps. It is about designing systems that will not create the same inequities in the future.

Innovation without equity just recreates the same problems at a higher speed.

Caroline Criado Perez

Caroline Criado Perez forces a harder question. Who was this system actually designed for?

Her research shows how often women are left out of the data that shapes infrastructure and safety. Even something as basic as crash test dummies has historically been modeled on male bodies. The result is unequal safety outcomes that most people never think about.

Her book Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men is not just about awareness. It is about accountability.

Because if you do not design for everyone, you are actively designing for exclusion.

Why This Matters Here

Transportation is not just about getting from point A to point B. It is the connection point for everything that helps someone move forward.

When transportation works, people can get to medical appointments, show up for class, keep a job, and stay on track. When it does not, those opportunities fall apart fast. That is the gap Modus exists to close.

Every ride is part of a larger system that either supports someone’s progress or stands in the way of it. Reliable transportation is one of the simplest and most overlooked ways to create real equity in a community.

The women in this article are proving what is possible at a global level.

The work we do at Modus brings that same idea home.

If you support Modus, you are not just supporting rides. You are investing in a system that helps people access healthcare, education, and employment consistently enough to build momentum. Join us today at ModusPitCrew.org and become a monthly supporter to help us drive more miles that matter.