For the first time the Sugar Loaf cable car is driven by a woman

Who sees Anna Caroline Boyd Martine, 38, driving the famous Sugar Loaf cable car, in Urca, south of the Rio de Janeiro, you may not imagine that she has ever suffered from a fear of heights.

“Before working on the cable car, I had already been to shows here at Pão de Açúcar. But I was terrified of heights. I barely opened my eyes inside the cable car”, remembers Anna Caroline, laughing.

In November 2021, already with the height trauma overcome, she entered the history of the carioca postcard. At the time, she became the first woman to work as a cable car operator in the park’s 109 years, according to the company that manages the tourist spot.

In other words, the professional is one of those responsible for transporting visitors on the cable car, a role that until then was occupied only by men.

The up and down of the cable car is controlled by Anna Caroline on a panel with colored buttons, installed inside the cabin, next to the doors. In total, 21 professionals are qualified to perform this function.

“I’m coming to conquer my space. I don’t want to take anyone’s place. That’s my thought. It’s been peaceful because I was very well received by the staff”, he says.

Before taking the cabin crew position, Anna Caroline worked as an operational attendant on the cable car. She was responsible for controlling the number of passengers and assisting in boarding and disembarking.

According to Anna Caroline, the first job in the carioca postcard made the fear of heights go back. From the cable car, it is possible to see, for example, Cristo Redentor, Botafogo cove and Vermelha and Copacabana beaches.

“I wanted to work close to nature”, he says. “So when the first opportunity came, I thought I couldn’t let the chance pass because of fear.”

She reports that she worked as an attendant between August 2019 and June 2020, when she was terminated due to the impacts of the coronavirus crisis on the tourism sector.

To her relief, she was rehired to her old role later that year. The worker continued as an attendant until migrating to the position of cabin operator in November 2021.

To occupy the current vacancy, she had to pass a period of theoretical and practical tests carried out in the park. These activities, she says, prepare operators for basic assignments to emergencies on the cable car — which, fortunately, has not been experienced by the worker so far.

According to her, women who visit Pão de Açúcar feel represented by seeing her in charge of the cable car.

“There was even an episode in which a man looked at me and asked if I would be the one to drive the cable car. Then his wife called him and said something like: ‘Of course it is. Why not?’ dull because whoever is around buys the noise”, he says.

Anna Caroline has a degree in social work. The lessons from the course are used in volunteer activities, says the operator, who presents herself as an “extremely extroverted” person. With a thick Carioca accent, she gestures a lot and smiles frequently.

In about 40 minutes of interview, he only changed his face once, when he remembered his father, who has already died.

“My father was raised here in Urca [bairro onde fica o bondinho]. He loved Pão de Açúcar and Rio. I never had the opportunity to visit the cable car with him”, he says.

“When I came here, all this was added up. The place was very special for him”, adds the operator, who met the groom while working at the park.

The cable car celebrates 110 years in October 2022. On average, it transports 1.6 million people a year and employs 239 employees, according to the company that takes care of the tourist spot.

The park is formed by the Urca and Sugarloaf Mountains. Interconnected by the cable car, they allow tourists to see the south of Rio at a height of up to 396 meters above sea level.