Recent British Transport Police statistics reveal that the number of recorded sexual offences on public transport has risen 25% in the past year, and by 32% on London's tube and train network, according to The Evening Standard.
To combat the problem, Labour candidate Jeremy Corbyn has said that if brought into power he would address the problem by consulting women about the possibility of women-only tube carriages.
Speaking about the issue Corbyn said: "The excellent work of individuals, campaigns, and groups like Everyday Sexism and Stop Street Harassment has highlighted just how prevalent street harassment is in our country today and the extent to which many women feel uncomfortable, anxious, and unsafe just going about their daily routines.
“It is simply unacceptable that many women and girls adapt their daily lives in order to avoid being harassed on the street, public transport and in other public places from the park to the supermarket. This could include taking longer routes to work, having self-imposed curfews, or avoiding certain means of transport.
And of his idea for women's-only carriages, he explained “Some women have raised with me that a solution to the rise in assault and harassment on public transport could be to introduce women only carriages.”
He elaborated: "I would consult with women and open it up to hear their views on whether women-only carriages would be welcome - and also if piloting this at times and [on] modes of transport where harassment is reported most frequently would be of interest.’
It's great to see a male MP addressing problems specific to women. But when considering the relevance of Corbyn's proposal, it's important to note that the rise in recorded sex crimes on public transport is down to more people reporting them, not necessarily a rise in their instance.
Last year the BTP started the Report It Stop It campaign - which hoped to empower its service users to report sex crimes of any magnitude, as well as the London-specific Project Guardian. Groups like the Everyday Sexism project Corbyn gives a nod to, and Hollaback London have been working on an initiative called Project Guardian to increase women's awareness and confidence in reporting any form of assault which has taken place on public transport, and to assure them that it will be taken seriously if they do.
While the Islington North MP is highlighting a suggestion he took on directly from female peers in the hope of improving their day-to-day routine, the idea that women would have to separate themselves from the opposite sex in order to feel safe is actually pretty disempowering.
Indeed, many criticising Corbyn's proposal have highlighted that women shouldn't have to be cordoned off from men to feel safe travelling at night, and questioned how their potential attackers would be kept out of these supposed safe spaces anyway.
Segregated train carriages have not existed in the UK since 1977, and seem like a step backwards for women, not forward.