TUTEM App to Boost Women's Metro Safety
In a major step towards ensuring safer travel for women in Hyderabad, a new technical solution—Technologies for Urban Transit to Enhance Mobility and Safe Accessibility (TUTEM)—has been developed by BITS Pilani-Hyderabad in collaboration with Hyderabad Metro Rail (HMR), Hyderabad Police, IIT Kharagpur, and IIT Bombay.
Supported financially by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the TUTEM system will soon be available to citizens in the form of a mobile app.
Speaking at a user workshop, HMR Managing Director NVS Reddy said the app will help women travelers safely reach their final destinations by integrating several amenities to provide seamless pre- and post-metro travel. “This app addresses the critical gap of first and last-mile connectivity, whether it is by walking, two-wheeler rides, cars, buses, or auto-rickshaws,” he said.
The TUTEM platform consists of two components: a driver app and a user app. In case women feel unsafe during any leg of their journey, they can instantly alert the police control center and notify family members via the app.
Reddy emphasized the need to address socio-economic problems through engineering and technological innovations.
Hyderabad Metro currently transports nearly half a million passengers daily, offering an eco-friendly mode of travel for the past seven years. Expansion plans are also underway, with metro lines being extended to the Old City area. Land acquisition is progressing rapidly, with several properties—including the 173-year-old Munshi Naan establishment—already demolished.
BITS Pilani Vice-Chancellor Prof. V Ram Gopal Rao said that the app has been designed keeping late-night travel in mind and expressed hopes of expanding the TUTEM model to other Indian cities soon.
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