Drunk men's appalling sexual harassment forced female Llandudno taxi driver to quit her jobhttps://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north- ... t-15860690Zoe Temple speaks out about the abuse she has faced including being kissed and groped by drunken male passengers
Image: Daily Post/David PowellA woman taxi driver has quit her job in disgust after suffering sexual assault and harassment from drunk male passengers.
Zoe Temple has bravely spoken out about the abuse she had to endure from a minority of men in her two years working as a driver in the Llandudno area.
Zoe, 28, told North Wales Live how she has been touched, stroked and spoken to inappropriately.
But the final straw for her came on Saturday, February 2 when she had to fight off a passenger who was trying to kiss her on the mouth.
On Boxing Day 2017 she was also subjected to a sexual assault by another male passenger which was investigated by police.
Zoe, who also works as a teaching assistant, waived her automatic right to anonymity to highlight the abuse.
She said: "A minority of drunk men seem to think it's ok to touch, kiss, and/or speak inappropriately to female taxi drivers.
"On Boxing Day in 2017 I picked up a man from Llandudno train station who was very drunk.
"He sat in the passenger seat in the front of the car, and whilst I was driving on the A55, he started stroking my thighs and my arm, kissing my arm and stroking my back, and told me how we were going home to have sex with each other.
"He said I can't believe I've 'pulled' you, to which I responded that I was his taxi driver."
She continued: "At one stage he even grabbed the steering wheel of the car and called me a 'bitch' when I tried to push him away.
"I couldn't stop the car, as it was dangerous and I was worried what would happen to him if I threw him out on the hard shoulder as he was so drunk."
Zoe, who is set to study for a master's degree in speech and language therapy, said she dropped the man in a well lit part of Rhyl, and then phoned the police.
The force investigated the incident but never managed to track the man down.
She said: "In my opinion the police didn't take it seriously enough. I received a text message from the police saying nothing more could be done to track the man down, a call explaining that would have been better I think.
"No support was offered from the police. Conwy Council could also perhaps review how things are done/the safety of both male and female drivers."
"The man probably has no idea what he did or any recollection of it, and has no idea what damage he has caused to me personally," said Zoe, who lives in Llandudno Junction.
"After dropping him off I phoned the police and my boyfriend and I couldn't stop crying.
"I didn't go back to work for a long time, and got rid of the jumper I was wearing that night, I felt totally violated."
North Wales Police Sergeant Paul Anderson told : "I am satisfied that the incident was thoroughly investigated, but regrettably we were unable to identify the offender despite numerous lines of inquiry."
But after February incident Zoe has decided enough is enough: "When another passenger tried to kiss me the other day, I had to push him off but he still managed to kiss me on the cheek. I've just had enough and the time has come for me to quit.
"People tell me being sexually harassed comes with a territory as a female taxi driver but why should this be the case.
"Why does it mean just because I am a woman that I should expect to be kissed and groped?"
She added: "I'm angry that I have to quit my job as a taxi driver because as a student the hours worked well for me, it seems unfair that it is me that has to change when this is not my fault."
Image: Daily Post/David Powell Zoe said many female passengers would ask her ever since she got her taxi license in 2016, whether she was afraid being a taxi driver as there would be risks as she was a woman.
"It's a predictable question which demonstrates that it is what is expected and accepted as part of the job. I enjoyed breaking that stigma for young female taxi drivers, but then all my experiences have proved the preconceptions to be right - being a female taxi driver can be very scary but this shouldn't be the case," she said.
"Male drivers also get aggression, violence, rudeness, threats, people not paying and so on, it's equally dangerous for them but in a different sense."
A spokesperson for Conwy Council's taxi licensing team said: "It would be inappropriate to comment on an individual case, however we can signpost and offer support to licence holders regardless of gender."
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