Adelaide radio presenter Ali Clarke has shared a distressing encounter on her Instagram in which she was refused a taxi ride and subjected to verbal abuse by a driver outside the Adelaide Casino.
The former Mix 102.3 breakfast host recounted the incident in an emotional Instagram video, describing how the driver rejected her fare and hurled an obscene insult at her.
The encounter, which took place after Clarke attended the Women of the Year Awards on Thursday night, has sparked outrage and renewed calls for passenger safety in the taxi industry.
In the video Clarke said she hailed a cab outside SkyCity Casino, expecting a routine trip home. However, upon giving the driver her address—just a short distance away—she was met with resistance.
“He said he had been waiting for 40 minutes and wasn’t willing to take me,” Clarke explained in her video, holding back tears.
“I even offered to pay more.”
But the driver refused, demanding that she leave the vehicle. As Clarke hesitated, trying to reason with him, he became aggressive.
“He said, ‘You need to get out, your p**** smells,’” she revealed, visibly shaken.
When she stepped out of the taxi, the driver allegedly repeated the slur before driving away, leaving her alone and vulnerable on the street.
Clarke, who is 48 and a mother of three, said she was shocked by the encounter, particularly on the eve of International Women’s Day—a day meant to celebrate and empower women.
“I can honestly say I’ve never felt more alone and exposed than tonight,” she wrote in her Instagram post.
She also attempted to report the incident to 13cabs but initially struggled to get a response.
“It was only after I took a photo of him and his number that he started getting abusive.”
The taxi company, 13cabs, has since released a statement, expressing concern over Clarke’s allegations and confirming an internal investigation is underway.
“We take customer complaints very seriously,” a company spokesperson said.
“The driver’s actions will be reviewed under our code of conduct, and any behaviour that does not meet our standards will not be tolerated.”
South Australia’s Minister for Women, Katrine Hildyard, condemned the incident, calling it “outrageous” and a stark reminder of the ongoing issues of gender-based harassment.
“The prevalence of violence and abuse against women is utterly unacceptable,” she said.
“We still have a long way to go in ensuring safety and equality for women in our community.”
Clarke, who stepped down from her radio role late last year, has been vocal about the need for better safety measures in the transport sector.
“If you can’t call out this kind of behaviour on International Women’s Day, when can you?” she said.
“No one, man or woman, should have to go through something like this.”
She also emphasised that her experience should not tarnish the reputation of all taxi drivers, acknowledging that “the vast majority are fantastic people.”
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