The names of railway stations and halts along the earliest railway lines on Lithuanian territory have been studied, i.e. along those railway lines built between 1861 and 1873. Especially, attention has been drawn to names that are not obvious regarding the geographical location of the station or halt. Some 50 percent of the names are showing some kind of irregularity in this respect. Most common (about 30 examples) are stations or halts that are serving a population centre situated at some distance from the station, but still bearing the name of that population centre. Another group of interesting cases is where the names have been changed over history for different reasons. These examples are about 20 in number. Among the examples of changed names are those, mostly minor halts, initially with no name but just a number, but later on provided with proper names. Most striking examples of name giving policy of the stations are railway junctions or border stations like Kaišiadorys, Virbalis/Kybartai, Švenčionėliai, Sniečkus/Visaginas, Maţeikiai/Muravjevo and Turmantas. Another dimension regarding names of railway stations in Lithuania is the fact that several languages (Lithuanian, Russian, Polish and German) have been used officially during the 150 years of the existence of Lithuanian railways.

Järnvägsstationer är att betrakta som offentliga platser och regleras av transportpolitiska målsättningar om jämställdhet och tillgänglighet för alla (Prop. 2008/09:93). Trots det saknas forskning om hur genus påverkar resenärer vid deras vardagliga vistelser på järnvägsstationer. Det övergripande syftet med denna avhandling är därför att ur ett genusperspektiv undersöka hur manliga och kvinnliga resenärer i sin vardag använder och upplever järnvägsstationer som fysiska platser och sociala rum. Det empiriska materialet baseras på resedagböcker, intervjuer med resenärer, deltagande observationer och intervjuer med planerare och förvaltare av järnvägsstationer. Kimstad pendeltågsstation, Norrköpings järnvägsstation och Stockholms Centralstation ingår i studien. I avhandlingen kombineras olika teorier som gör det möjligt att betrakta genus som rytm. Genom detta teoretiska ramverk undersöks hur genusmaktordningen återverkar i tid, rum och mobilitet. Resultaten av studien visar att resenärer är påverkade av genusmaktordningen, som återfinns såväl i kollektiva föreställningar som i materialiserade objekt som möter resenärer när de vistas på järnvägsstationerna. Sammanfattningsvis visar studien att såväl manliga som kvinnliga resenärer påverkas av denna maktordning. Även om denna ordning påverkar alla tycks kvinnor vara de som påverkas mest negativt, eftersom de genom en manlig normerad blick betraktas som antingen ärbara eller sexuellt tillgängliga objekt, därutöver att de är tvungna att förhålla sig till risken att utsättas för sexualiserat våld från män. Av dessa anledningar tenderar kvinnors livsrum att inskränkas, oavsett ålder och plats. / Railway stations are perceived as public spaces and are regulated by national transport goals of equality and accessibility for all (Prop. 2008/09:93). However, hardly any research has looked at how gender affects commuters in their daily life at railway stations. The overriding aim of this study is to examine how male and female commuters use and experience railway stations as gendered physical places and social spaces, during their daily travels. The empirical material is based on travel diaries, interviews with male and female commuters, participant observations inspired by auto-ethnography and interviews with planners and managers of the railway stations. Stations included in the study are Kimstad commuter rail station, Norrköping railway station and Stockholm Central station (all in Sweden). In this thesis this combination of theories makes it possible to define gender as rhythm. Through this theoretical frame the thesis analyses gendered power relations of bodies in time, space and mobility. Results from the study show that individuals are affected by gendered power relations that dwell in collective believes and in shape of materialized objects that encounter the commuter when visiting the railway station. In conclusion the study shows that both female and male commuters are affected by gender power relations while visiting railway stations. Even though they affect all, women seem to be most negatively affected by these power relations, since women by gender as rhythms are considered as either objects of decency or as sexually available to heterosexual men. Further, female bodies negotiate the risk of encountering sexual violence therefore gender as rythm tend to decrease the extent of women’s everyday living spaces, regardless of age and place.