Carl Jordan Castro photo
Rafel Sanabria can’t wait to graduate from high school so he can move to Atlanta and stop taking New Haven’s crowded buses.
“I’m moving to Atlanta because it’s way too expensive here,” said Sanabria, an 18-year-old New Haven resident.
“It has good community colleges and Atlanta Tech is out there,” said Sanabria. “I want to go down there and study culinary arts.”
Sanabria goes to school at Riverside Academy in New Haven — and uses CT Transit to commute. He doesn’t live far away, but still prefers the bus over walking.
He’s been taking the bus by himself for 10 years. He has only one complaint.
“They need bigger buses,” Sanabria said, holding his arms outstretched. “It gets way too crowded real quick on the bus sometimes.”
He hopes to change his travel situation once he moves to Georgia.
His plan is to live with relatives at first, but buy a car and start living on his own as soon as he can.
A friend of his will also be joining him in Atlanta. They both have been searching for houses on Craigslist — and simultaneously planning how to fund their big move.
“We’re not planning on renting, we want to buy it. The houses in Atlanta are dirt cheap compared to what’s out here,” said Sanabria. “My friend is making money through the Job Corps right now, so he’s just waiting for me to make my move.”
Sanabria’s voice had a determined and enthusiastic tone as he outlined his goals.
But college, cars, and houses cost money: a vital piece to Sanabria’s puzzle. He said finding a job is his greatest struggle right now. He has sent out dozens of applications around Connecticut.
“I can’t find a job anywhere in this state,” he said. “I’ll take any job, anything that comes my way I’ll take it.”
The CT Bus Diaries project is a collaboration between the New Haven Independent, the Valley Independent Sentinel and students from the multimedia journalism class at Southern Connecticut State University. The students are blogging about experiences on CT Transit’s bus lines in order to give a glimpse into the commutes of the people using the bus system.
Share your CT Transit experiences with us by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) photos or videos to Jodie Mozdzer Gil or tagging #CTBusDiaries on Twitter posts.
Related Stories
* Resto Steers the O
* The Bus Stop is Quiet on Sundays
‘I’m Sick of Driving’
* CT Transit Drove Me To Zipcar
* Work Search Starts With The Bus
* Der Bus Ist Gut
* Football Win Makes The Bus Ride Bearable
* Brenda Works Around the F Bus
* Where’d the Q3 Go?
* 3‑Hour Commute Includes 3 Buses, 1 Train
* On Inaugural Ride, Student Meets the D Bus “Queen”
* Commute By Bus Must Start 2 1/2 Hours Ahead
* Foley: Let People Drive
* Malloy Vows To “Build a Better Bus System”
* State Bus Boss: What Broken System?
