Gender has reached the small human on traffic signals in Australia. Signals at ten crossings in the city of Melbourne now depict walking red and green people in dresses. The is part of a trial 12-month gender equality campaign unveiled by the city. The Minister for Women, Fiona Richardson, explained that the behind the trial was to put more images of women in public . She said: "There are many small, but symbolically ways that women are excluded from public space. This is a way to make public space more inclusive for women." She hopes the city's signals will have numbers of male and female figures in the .
The new signals have drawn a response from citizens. Many critics say the new scheme is and a waste of taxpayers' money. A leading is Melbourne's mayor Robert Doyle, who told reporters: "I'm all for doing we can for gender equity, but ?" He added: "Unfortunately, I think this sort of costly exercise is more likely to bring ." Others said the new images were a sign of political gone crazy. Social media users asked why the of the woman has to wear a dress, when many women wear trousers. Others said the money could have been better used for projects that helped people in .
