Gender is probably the most unnoticed aspect of housing in Ireland.

Historically, and not just in Ireland, there has been very little attention paid to the needs of women in the planning and construction of housing and neighbourhoods. The reality is that the built environment is designed by men, for men: the mobility, safety and physiological needs of the heteronormative, middle-income, younger, able-bodied and healthy man.

The issues facing people with a disability or whose mobility is impaired trying to navigate our public realm are a subject for another column. But planners don’t just fail to consider their needs – they rarely consider the needs of half the population.

Just ask any woman (or man, but it is mostly women) who has had to struggle with a buggy and narrow footpaths with no dropped kerbs, searching for a public toilet to change a nappy.

Eight teenagers and man injured after two-car crash on M50 involving vehicle going wrong way

Daniel Kinahan arrested after extradition from Dubai, due to appear at Special Criminal Court this evening

FSAI recalls more than 40 items from Dunnes Stores and SuperValu

Alleged sexual abuse by father led to two pregnancies, daughter tells court

Or ask anyone who has felt unsafe in a poorly lit public space; or an older person at a pedestrian light where Rhasidat Adeleke would struggle to cross while the green man stays lit. Or anyone waiting for a bus at a stop with no seating.

As with many things in housing, Vienna in Austria has led the way for decades. All aspects of public life there – especially housing – are driven by the city’s aim to make planning more gender equitable.

In 1992, the city authority........

© The Irish Times