Meet Denekenesh, one of four women cabbies in the city
Denekenesh Semegn says people are usually surprised when she arrives to pick them up
Cabbie Confidential is a CBC London series that asks the men and women who know our city streets the best to "tell all" about what they see on the roads, who they meet and some of their hopes for this city.
There aren't many women driving taxis in London.
In fact, only four women are on the city's primary cab company payrolls, two at Yellow Taxi and two at You-Need-A Cab. Green Taxi says it would happily hire women, if only they applied.
Denekenesh Semegn is one of those rare women cabbies. The CBC's Sofia Rodriguez hopped into her cab to find out her story. Here's part of that conversation:
How did you end up driving this cab?
My husband used to drive a cab, but he passed away many years ago. These days with Uber, it's hard to get a [cab] driver, so I said 'why not? I'm going to start'. And I like driving.
There aren't too many women driving cabs, are people ever surprised to see you?
Most of the time when they open the door they go 'Woah!' and then they apologize. They're always expecting a guy. After that they're usually happy to see a lady driver. I feel like the customers have more care for ladies I guess, so, I'm lucky and I don't get much of a hard time from customers.
- Favourite street to drive on: Hyde Park Road.
- Least favourite street to drive on: Downtown. It's too crazy and too crowded all the time.
- What's the one thing London drivers do that annoys you most? Some drivers have no patience. It makes me mad.
Are there challenges because you're a woman driving a cab?
Not really. I don't drive at night. The customers are usually kind. In fact, by nature I have patience and if someone angry comes into my car, I make them calm down, so it works for me.
What's the worst customer experience you've had while driving this cab?
I drove a couple of guys to many places. It was a $140 fare. I dropped them home and they said they would come back [with the money]. I trusted them and they never showed up. When police came, they found out the guys left through the backdoor.
It's sad, but what can you do? It's a good day and a bad day all the time. I wish they were honest.
Always when I drive, my mind goes to the homelss because I see them on the road- Denekenesh Semegn, London Cabbie
If you could change one thing about London what would it be?
Always when I drive my mind goes to the homeless because I see them on the road. I wish there was a better place to put them that would help them.
What's your favourite thing about driving this cab?
Talking to the customers and [learning about] different kinds of experiences from them. I like that. I learn a lot from them and I share what I know with them.
