A law student in the southern Indian city of Kochi drives a bus every Sunday to show that women can drive.
Ann Mary’s favourite sound as a youngster was the roar of her father’s Royal Enfield Bullet. She’d dash to the gate as soon as she heard it, ready to climb aboard and join her father on a joyride. As she grew older, she fantasised about riding a bullet herself. So, at the age of 15, her ever-supportive father taught her how to ride a bike. She eventually learnt how to drive a car and became in love with driving in general. This fondness for smaller vehicles would pique her interest in larger ones, such as buses and lorries.
The opportunity came with her neighbour Sarath, who knew how to operate a bus. He taught her all he knew. She began training a few months before her 21st birthday and enrolled in a driving school to obtain a heavy vehicle driver’s licence. Every Sunday, she drives a private bus named ‘Hey Day’ around Kochi.
Ann, a fourth-year student at Ernakulam’s Government Law College, makes time on Sundays to transport passengers on the Kakkanad-Perumpadappu route from 7 a.m. to 6.45 p.m. She also drives the bus back home on days when her High Court internship is coming to an end.
Ann recalls that her first experience driving a bus with passengers was both exciting and worrisome.
The country has a relatively small number of female bus drivers. In India, the metropolitan public transportation system employs just 17.5% women.
According to the survey, this is owing to a conventional macho image of the transportation sector, in addition to difficult working circumstances. There is also the misconception that women cannot “manage” a bus and that if they become drivers, accidents will increase.
Ann also claims that male drivers were first wary of her, questioning why woman was operating a bus with no financial restraints. They have warmed up to her over time, and she likes their companionship.
While driving a bus, she keeps many key things in mind. She must also learn time management because she is required to keep a timesheet while driving the bus. She must arrive at each station on time, while still managing her time wisely in college and at her internship.
Ann claims that Sarath’s driving lessons were quite useful to her. Ann, who wants to be a magistrate, says she wants to earn a JCB licence so she may experiment with other heavy trucks.
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