Poor roads and transport infrastructure are key factors in the marginalization of women and other disempowered groups, but there is little understanding of the many ways in which a lack of mobility affects people’s lives. In South-east Asia, huge strides are being made in highway development and regional economic integration. The complex interplay of factors makes the connections discovered both interesting and challenging for study. Do roads necessarily bring economic opportunities and prosperity? How does the possible change in mobility transform the lives of women and marginalized groups? How does the differential impact of these changes on people depend on geographical, social, and historical factors and people’s own capacities to make optimum use of the new resource? Gender, Roads, and Mobility in Asia brings together stories from different points of transformation and what emerges is a nuanced picture of how people’s own positions and capabilities – gender, age, ethnicity, literacy, and education – influence the impact of the infrastructure development on their lives.This book should be read by policy makers, transportation planners, development practitioners and researchers.

Prelims (Acknowledgements)
1. Introduction: Gender, roads, and mobility in Asia
Kyoko Kusakabe
PART ONE: Connecting Asia: Explosive growth in infrastructure
2. International road transport in GMS
Madan B. Regmi and Shinya Hanaoka
3. Influence of transportation infrastructure development on freight traffic flow patterns in GMS
Takafumi Iwata, Hironori Kato and Ryuichi Shibasaki
4. Rural–urban–global linkages, economic integration, and development
H. Detlef Kammeier
5. The influence of highways on economic development of medium- and small-sized cities in China
Shinya Hanaoka and Ba Tianxing
PART TWO: Gendered impact of transport development
6. Gender, mobility, and road construction in GMS
Kyoko Kusakabe
7. Gendered impacts of road infrastructure development along the Kunming–Bangkok highway
Wang Yunxian and Zhao Qun
8. Effects of infrastructure development on trade and gender relations: A study at Lao Bao border, Vietnam
Nguyen Thi Diem Hang, Nguyen Thi Phuong Hien, Trinh Thi Bich Thuy, Vu Thi Hoang Yen and Vo Thi Quynh Truc
9. Gender analysis of changes in livelihoods at the border: A case study of Houayxai, Lao PDR
Saykham Thammanosouth, Viengnam Douangphachanh and Lamphoun Khounphakdy
10. Impact of cross-border road construction on the livelihoods of women and men in Kyaing Tong– Tachilek, Myanmar
Win Myo Thu
11. Cross-border trading experiences before and after the construction of the second Lao–Thai Friendship Bridge
Nittana Southiseng and John Walsh
12. Negotiating the trade route at the border: A case study of women small-scale cross-border traders in Myitkyina, Myanmar
Khin Hnin Phyu
13. Gendered patterns of urban commuting with better connectivity in Jakarta megapolitan area
Sri Hartinin Rachmod, Ardi Adji and Dendi Handiyatmo
14. Gendered mobility of working couples: A case of Soi Sukhumvit 22
Wijitbusaba Ann Marome
PART THREE: Planning gendered interventions in road development
15. Role of transport infrastructure in changing gender relations in rural Sri Lanka
Upali Pannilage
16. Participatory road construction and poverty reduction in Nepal
Jun Hada
17. Road connectivity and its impact on women’s poverty in Nepal
Bandana Sharma
18. Construction of village roads by villagers: Creating jobs forwomen and men in Sunamganj, Bangladesh
Sk. Md. Mohsin, Edward Mallorie and Michael A. Roy
19. Road improvement in Cambodia: Livelihood, education, health, and empowerment
John Pilgrim and Ngin Chanrith
20. Mobility and accessibility to health services in rural Nepal
Binjwala Shrestha
21. Conclusion: Studying gender relations in a mobile world
Kyoko Kusakabe
Back Matter (Index)

Kyoko Kusakabe Kyoko Kusakabe is Associate Professor, Gender and Development Studies, School of Environment, Resources and Development, Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand.