DRIVER PROFILE IS BOZENA A PETROLHEAD? NOT HALF!
Bozena Pejta is mad about driving - and she doesn’t care what. The self-con- fessed tomboy has raced motorbikes at Silverstone and Brands Hatch, and even enjoyed a stint as a train engineer in her home country of Poland (about which more later).
But it was only when she’d moved to Lon- don and indulged her passion with a job as a full-time minicab driver for Addison Lee, that she found true happiness.
First a bit of back- ground: 44-year old Bozena first came to London in 1999, when her two sons (now 24 and 22) were studying
in England and she wanted to be here for them. Her first job was as a nanny; because her employer knew how much she likes cars and driving, it was suggested that Bozena might like to qualify as a private hire driver.
Good idea! she thought. So Bozena got her badge in 2008, and subsequently studied hard to pass the rigorous PH driv- ers’ knowledge test and became one of the few female drivers - not just at Addison Lee but in the entire private hire vehicle industry. The test referred to here is Addison Lee’s own training pro-
gramme, which Boz- ena says is extremely thorough and set her up to tackle the job properly.
DREAM JOB
Fast forward: Bozena has now been driving for Addison Lee for the last four years. She said: “Working as a driver for Addison Lee is my dream job, I love it. Traffic doesn’t bother me, in fact I find driving for a living very relaxing. It’s also a very flexible job and if you have a problem, the company is so helpful.”
When you speak to Bozena, her enthusi- asm for the job is apparent from the
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first word – as is her love of her adopted city. Her sons are back in Poland study- ing at university, but Bozena shares a flat in London with her sister Sabina. “There are some great opportunities, espe- cially for someone like me who is keen to work and earn money. I feel at home in London, in fact I’m saving up for a deposit on a flat.” What is her chosen chariot these days? A Ford Galaxy: Bozena started out with a Galaxy, then drove a Mercedes for a while, but went back to Galaxy as it best suits her lifestyle - and passengers. Frankly, you wouldn’t find a better advert for this industry, especial- ly for members of the fairer sex. Bozena said: “There aren’t many female drivers in the UK or Poland, so it does come in handy when a woman is requested for a job. Working at Addison Lee I’m never worried about my safety, I also
think on the job expe- rience has helped me become a good judge of character. I work nights so I’ve dealt with drunks and rowdy behaviour but that sort of thing is much rarer than you might think.”
Bozena also told us she would love to do the dreaded London Knowledge – you know, the black cab exam that takes years to prepare for. “It’s not that I want to leave Addison Lee – I would not do that – but I would like to get to know London more thoroughly.”
OTHER WHEELS
But what about Bozena’s other driving pursuits? She does really enjoy motor- bikes as well… in fact, she attended a motor- bike racing week- end recently which was a sort of work- shop for motorbike riders. Workshop? Having raced at Sil- verstone and Brands Hatch is hardly kid- stuff… but again,
Bozena always wants to do it right.
Now then, what about driving a train? “I was studying engineering in Poland some years ago (won’t tell you how many!), and we had to learn all about the workings of a train engine, so I actually drove one as part of the course.” Not many engineering courses in this coun- try have that on the curriculum!
OK, going back to the header of our story, the definition of ‘petrolhead’ is ‘a per- son who is exces- sively interested in or is devoted to travel- ling by car’. So here’s the question: do these other transport pursuits disqualify Bozena as a petrol- head? No way! It’s just that cars are top of Bozena’s list, and the fact that she can earn a living doing what she loves most is a bonus.
All the very best to Bozena in her contin- ued career and life in London; it was a pleas- ure chatting to her.
OCTOBER 2015
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