Women in Motion brings women across transport together
From left to right: Delaney Myers (Chief Executive, Bus & Coach Association NZ), Asma Shaikh (Operations Cadet and Women Up Front alumna, Kinetic), Kristy Garza (Relationship Partnering Lead, Auckland Transport), Rachel Cara (Group Manager Public Transport Operations, Auckland Transport), Moana Kilmartin (General Manager Customer Experience, Kinetic), Meenal Maharaj (Marketing & Communications Manager, Kinetic), Erica Stander (Service Delivery Manager – Tauranga, Kinetic), Ailish Swinbank (General Manager Property, Kinetic), Mandi Lawrence (Team Leader – Public Transport Operations, Environment Canterbury) and in front: Tracy Fleming (Team Leader – Strategy & Planning – Public Transport, Environment Canterbury)
Women from across Kinetic New Zealand and several of our industry partners came together in Auckland last week for the first event held under Women in Motion, a new Kinetic-led initiative connecting women across the transport sector.
While women's representation across transport is growing, the industry and many of its established professional networks remain male-dominated. Women in Motion was created in response to this, complementing Kinetic’s existing work to improve gender representation by connecting women from across our business with women from councils, transport authorities and industry partners.
For the inaugural event, Kinetic hosted a table at the M2woman Journey to Excellence event in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, bringing together women working across frontline operations, leadership and stakeholder organisations for an afternoon focused on leadership, resilience and personal growth.
The themes explored during the afternoon were especially relevant as public transport navigates significant change, from continued fleet and depot electrification and emerging technology to evolving customer expectations and the ongoing challenge of delivering safe, reliable services.
Meeting these challenges will require resilient and adaptable leaders who can build trust, negotiate shared outcomes and embrace technology without losing the human judgement and connection at the heart of moving people. It also makes it increasingly important that women are represented in the conversations and decisions shaping the sector’s future.
Kinetic New Zealand Marketing and Communications Manager Meenal Maharaj, who developed Women in Motion after recognising an opportunity to create stronger connections between women across the sector, said the first event had reinforced why the initiative mattered.
“Women play an essential role at every level of our industry, but they don’t always have access to the same networks or visibility. Women in Motion is about using Kinetic’s position in the sector to bring people together, build stronger relationships and create opportunities for women who are helping move our communities forward.”
Bus and Coach Association New Zealand Chief Executive Delaney Myers, who joined the inaugural Women in Motion group, said creating spaces for women to connect also helped challenge the expectation that they needed to change themselves to succeed in the industry.
“A lot of women believe they need to adapt themselves to fit a male-dominated industry. Events like this help remind women to celebrate the different perspectives and qualities they bring. That’s important: the workplace only benefits from diversity when people’s differences are recognised as strengths.”
The inaugural event created space for women working across different parts of the sector to connect, share perspectives and recognise the value their experiences and strengths bring to transport.
Find out more about Kinetic’s commitment to Women in Transport, including our Women in Action plan.