Woman enjoys a taxi driver's life

Woman enjoys a taxi driver's life

JAKARTA (JP): What is rare always draws one's attention. And
this is indeed true in the case of Detty Marni. Being a female
taxi driver, she always gets the same question from curious
passengers about why she is doing her job. Consequently, she has
to tell the same story over and over again.

"I never dreamed of being a taxi driver," she said. "I took
the job because I like kelayaban (going out)."

The best thing she likes about the job is the freedom. "No one
can tell you to do this or that. And if you are tired you can
take a rest."

The need for freedom is also what keeps her from switching
jobs and becoming a private chauffeur.

Detty is one of two female drivers at the Citra taxi company,
which has about 1,000 drivers. There are some 20,000 taxi drivers
in the city, but only 10 are women.

Her driving skills and amiable attitude have helped her to
become a good taxi driver. Though she has been an avid driver
since her early teens, Detty admits that her knowledge of the
technical aspects of a car is limited to changing tires.

"I can usually just call a mechanic if something breaks down,"
she said.

With her short hair and firm shoulders, people and passengers
often mistake her for a man. It is not until you talk to her
that you sense her femininity.

Detty was born in Padang, West Sumatra, in 1964, but grew up
in Jambi. She went to a college in Padang and finished a three-
year non-degree program in economics.

Upon graduation, she went to Jakarta to try her luck. She
worked in a supermarket for a while, but then one of her parents
died and she had to go back home.

In 1988, Detty returned to Jakarta. She got a job at a
motorcycle dealership, and then moved to a car dealership.
Detty started at the Steady Safe taxi company about three years
ago.

The start of her days as a taxi driver began rather
unauspiciously. On her second day at work she hit a child who was
recklessly crossing the street.

"Just imagine how shocked I was. It was only my second day and
I experienced such a terrible thing," she recalled.

She was traumatized and stayed away from work for about a
week. Oddly enough, it was the child's father who encouraged her
to get back behind the wheel. He even came to her employer and
told him that it was not her fault.

"I had nothing else to do, anyway, so I began driving again,"
she said.

She worked 12 hours, sometimes 18 hours a day, but she had a
day off every two working days. When she had to work 18 hours,
she would start driving at 1 p.m. and finish at 7 a.m.

At night, she would wait for passengers at five-star hotels.
She was selective in picking up passengers on the streets at
night and around 4 a.m. she would head to the train station to
pick up passengers.

So far, she has never had a bad experience with any
passengers.

Detty has worked at Citra taxi since last July. After two
months, she was promoted from the position of a reserve driver to
a regular driver, which gave her the right to begin paying
installments towards owning her own cab.

She has to hand over Rp 62,500 per day to the company.

"I hope I will be able to pay off the debt within four years
or so," she said.

On a slow day, Detty earns at least Rp 20,000 for herself
after paying her required installment. On a good day she can take
home as much as Rp 100,000.

Sometimes being a female taxi driver can have its advantages
in that her passengers tend to be more generous when they tip.

"There was one who gave me a Rp 20,000 tip for a Rp 5,000
fare," she said.

She has never been harassed or had her passengers make
advances towards her.

"The main thing is to know how to carry yourself," she
remarked.

In her three years of experience she has found her co-workers
to be nice, helpful and accepting of her presence in the male
dominated profession. She has never heard unflattering remarks
regarding her gender from her colleagues.

"But of course I don't know what they say about me behind my
back," she quipped.

Detty seems to have her future carefully planned out for the
coming years. She wants to stay with the job until her
installments are paid off. Once the car is her own, she hopes to
have enough money to set up her own business as a trader.
(mds/sim)