Spotlighting Women working in light rail for International Women in Engineering day 2026.

On International Women in Engineering Day, UKTram celebrated the women helping shape the future of light rail and the wider transport sector.

UKTRam is the collective voice of light rail in the UK and Ireland, and committed to inspiring the next generation and highlighting those already making a difference in our industry.

Taking part in the UKTram campaign to celebrate International Women in Engineering Day was SPT’s own Clara Odede, Rolling Stock Asset Engineer at Subway.

Clara’s motivation to become an engineer came from a desire to make a difference, recalling a lecture from her university days, Clara explained:

"In one of the first lectures I attended, the lecturer described a doctor as a person who fixes individual problems, whereas an engineer can fix societal problems through science and technology.

"I'm quite people driven, so this was appealing to me as the impact felt more lasting and affected a larger scale of society."

Working at Subway, Clara’s role is centred around safety and reliability.

"I'm responsible for the asset management of all subway rolling stock and rail-mounted plant, ensuring the safety and performance of the trains," she explains.

Acting as technical authority, Clara oversees engineering changes, concessions, and lifecycle plans as part of the Subway modernisation programme.

Obviously passionate about her job, Clara describes an engineering career path as “genuinely interesting, fun and learning never stops”.

She added: “Transport is for connecting people. It makes the tough days worth it when I know our trains are getting people where they need to go. Challenges are interesting, varied and technology is ever improving.

Clara encourages anyone with an interest in engineering, especially young girls to have a look and consider as a future career.

“Don’t be scared to do new things especially when you’re young as you are given more leniency to make mistakes. And don’t get bogged down in self-doubt, there’s over six million people working in engineering just in the UK so there’s a place for you!”