Pink Lights Help Pregnant South Korean Women Find Seats On Trains In Trial Technology

Busan, a city in South Korea, has recently tested a technology with the goal of easily getting pregnant women seats on a train. The Pink Light Campaign was tested by 500 pregnant women over five days, according to reports.

It involves wireless technology, where round devices with sensors activate pink lights on sensors placed by priority seats for pregnant women on trains. According to The Telegraph, the Pink Light Campaign aims to get pregnant women seated without the need to ask and to let other passengers know when someone is pregnant without guessing and possibly offending women.

#SouthKorea tries out "Pink Light campaign" to make public transport more convenient for pregnant women: https://t.co/If9guxcnV0 v @BBCTech

— UN Women (@UN_Women) June 5, 2016

Pink Light Campaign To Expand

The testing of the devices, which have to be carried outside the bag and have six months of battery life, was done only in select parts of Busan's train system. Asahi reported that the city government aims to test it in more of Busan's subway lines and even in its bus system.

"Consideration for pregnant women should prevail and they should be able to use public transportation more easily and conveniently with this policy," Suh Byung-soo, Busan's mayor, was quoted as saying. Suh added that pregnancy should not bar women from using city facilities.

Pink Light Campaign May Embarrass Some

Podcaster and technology journalist Ellie Gibson from parenting podcast Scummy Mummies is not a big fan of the Pink Light Campaign. BBC quoted her as saying said that it "feels a bit like an overly complicated solution to a simple problem."

Gibson said that she felt embarrassed wearing a Baby on Board badge, which is given to pregnant women in London who travel. "I'm not sure how comfortable I would feel with pink lights going off when I got on a train," said Gibson.

What do you think about the Pink Light Campaign? Share your thoughts below.