Women's parking spaces drive ongoing controversy in Prague

A reader recently sent the publication a photo of some women-only parking spaces at a Prague 9 McCafé, writing: “I was quite offended when I arrived at the parking lot to have coffee with my sister. As a woman, I felt it as an insult. Men also do not have their own parking, do they?”

Zuzana Svobodová, Director of PR and Communication for the fast-food chain said the first female parking space appeared in front of a restaurant on the D10 highway to Mladá Boleslav about ten years ago. However, such parking spots haven’t attracted much interest among the fast-food chain’s female clientele and are not widespread.

“We tried to make our customers feel safer by having parking right at the front door of the restaurant,” she said. “Particularly during evening operating hours, when women may feel threatened. We wanted to offer them a more illuminated and clear place.” 

In Germany and Austria where such parking spaces are common, they are often made wider for practical reasons, for example, to give avoid kids exiting cars and damaging surrounding vehicles — not because women are worse drivers. In fact, tests carried out by the Czech Central Automotoclub, suggest that women are actually more careful than men when it comes to parking.

In recent years the Czech Republic has introduced special train cars designated for women only in an effort to make passengers feel safer. Similar controversies have popped up around the issue of a Czech beer created just for women.