nothin Next Stop: Karma | New Haven Independent

Next Stop: Karma

Carl Jordan Castro photo

One started relying on the bus when her boyfriend sold their car. Another had no choice thanks to the tax collector.

All had an immediate destination in mind, some longer-range ones as well.

From an Elton John fan to a stripper and a pick-up artist, a range of riders on the New Haven Green shared their stories about why they ride the bus, and what it’s like, as they waited to make their connection.

Carl Jordan Castro photo

RICHARD
Connecticut is the dullest place on earth.”

After having his car confiscated by the New Haven tax collector’s office, Richard (who wouldn’t give his last name) says he has no choice but to take the bus.

He lives on a monthly disability check worth $219 and is hoping to receive social security income soon. He’s been diagnosed with heart disease and HIV/AIDS. He uses the bus to visit friends, go shopping and to keep doctor appointments. He d like to see more buses running on the weekend and a bus that goes from New Haven to Monroe and from Monroe to Branford.

I always liked New Haven and the New Haven police, but the tax collector’s office can kiss my ass,” he says.

The 53-year-old Chapel Street resident, who is obsessed with the old version of Elton John,” said he likes New Haven because it’s the closest place he can find to Manhattan without paying for Manhattan rent.

It’s the life [of Manhattan] that I love,” he says. ” Connecticut is the dullest place on earth.”

Hannah Spreckley photo

CESAR

There was this really racist woman.”

Cesar CJ” Perez, 16, lives in downtown New Haven and takes the bus to school every day. He is a student at Notre Dame High School in West Haven and uses a 10-ride bus pass.

He said his biggest gripe on the bus is drunk people, including a woman who called him a drug dealer.

There was this really racist woman who called me a drug dealer and said I wasn’t raised right.”

Perez said he is excited to get his own car and start driving, because it will give him more freedom.

I have to base my schedule on their [CT Transit’s] schedule, and that sucks,” he said.

Carl Jordan Castro photo

MANDO
My boss just calls me up and tells me where to go.”

Mando, a 40-year-old landscaper who wouldn’t give his last name, uses the bus primarily to go to work as a landscaper.

The only problem is he doesn’t know where he’s going until his boss calls him. It all depends on where the job is. 

Mando moved into New Haven two months ago and doesn’t have a car. He hasn’t had a problem with the bus system yet.

He didn’t want his face shown in the photograph, but was willing to show a tattoo on his hand that represents the notion that death is connected with time.

Carl Jordan Castro photo

RONNIE
There are plenty of people that have the same problem.”

Ronnie Lee, a 57-year-old choirster, said he hates the fact that buses stop running after 5 p.m. on the weekends and wishes that there were more buses going toward Waterbury.

Ronnie sings for the Zion Baptist Church choir in Waterbury and finds it difficult to get there on weekend afternoons. Ronnie relies on disability checks; the bus is his only mode of transportation.

It’s hard for me to get to the afternoon programs,”he said. There are no buses to take me there and no buses to take me back.”

Ronnie lived in Waterbury before he moved to New Haven six months ago. Once he was on disability the only housing he could afford was in New Haven. He also says getting around New Haven on the weekend at night is hard because there aren’t any buses running to his neighborhood near Fitch Street.

Sometimes I’ll come here for a summer concert and have to walk all the way to where I live,” he said. There are plenty of people that have that problem. I’m blind in one eye and I can’t see well in the dark.”

Hannah Spreckley photo

G’

I’ve seen people smoking crack at the bus stop.”

G,” said he has been recently dealing with some issues with identity theft and was reluctant to give up his name.

The 41-year-old Hamden resident said he doesn’t catch the bus every day, but has noticed on several occasions the younger people disrespecting their elders.

And breaking the law.

I’ve seen people smoking crack at the bus stop,” G said.

Carl Jordan Castro photo

TIFFANY
I know if I do it, it’ll come back to me.”

Tiffany Lynn, a 26-year-old stripper, said she mainly uses the bus to get to work nowadays because of financial issues.

My boyfriend just sold his 96 Honda Prelude,” she says. He sold it for a lot less than what he expected. He was pissed”

She and her boyfriend are currently living in a motel in New Haven where monthly rent has been a struggle to keep up with. Tiffany also said she’s on Methadone to help her combat a long-time drug habit.

But even with all those problems Tiffany said she tries to help others when she can.

I try to help friends when I can even though I’m the one that needs help,” said Tiffany. I know if I do it it’ll come back to me. It’s Karma.”

Hannah Spreckley photo

JEFF

I see fighting and arguing over who’s selling how many cigarettes.”

Jeff Brown, originally from Miami, has been in Connecticut for three or four months.

Most days he catches the bus downtown from Whalley Avenue to hang out with friends.

If he could change one issue about CT Transit, it would be their promptness.

However, he said he doesn’t think it’s specific to the bus systems in Connecticut.

It’s pretty much the same as Miami,” Brown said. Different state, different climate — that’s about it.”

Hannah Spreckley photo

JAMIE

He kept on screaming I need help, I need help.’”

Jamie Herbert is a student at Southern Connecticut State University and takes the bus downtown every day to work at Panera Bread.

Despite having her driving license, she still takes the bus everyday. She said it’s a pain to park and it costs money.

On a recent bus trip, she noticed a man with what she perceived to be a mental disability.

He kept on screaming I need help, I need help,’” Herbert said. No one was helping him and people were pushing him around.”

I was like, what could I do? I’m a little girl – I don’t want to get involved in this. He was just hysterical and he wouldn’t get off the bus. He kept asking people if he could call his girlfriend on their phone.”

Alexander Roberts Photo

ARTAVIS
I took the opportunity and ran.”

Twenty years ago, Artavis Evans was training to try to qualify for the men’s gymnastics team in the 1996 summer Olympics.

Then a family tragedy changed his trajectory.

Waiting patiently for the B1 bus in downtown New Haven on recent day, Evans checked his cell phone and reached into his pocket for a cigarette. Evans said he has lived in New Haven since 1993, after he moved here from Georgia following his cousin’s suicide. While in Georgia as a young child, Evans learned the basics of gymnastics in his neighborhood and grew to appreciate it.

I took the opportunity and ran with it,” said Evans.

He got better at gymnastics as time went on, he said, and was on track to participate in the 1996 Olympics. In 1993, Evans witnessed his cousin’s death, an event that had a lasting negative effect. He came to Connecticut to get away, and did not follow through on his Olympic dreams.

Living in New Haven, Evans has focused on trying to improve himself and deal with the challenges he faces due to his past.

Evans doesn’t have a car, so riding the bus is his only option at the moment.

It is beneficial for the time being until I can purchase a vehicle and get on my feet,” said Evans.

He rides the bus everywhere, especially medical appointments, job fairs, shopping and seminars.

I use the bus for pretty much anything and everything,” said Evans.


Carl Jordan Castro photo

EDDIE
Now that I’m like this I’ve got to take the bus.”

Eddie, a 40-year-old resident of Orange Street, has been disabled for 20 years — relying on the bus to take him wherever he needs to go.

I was in a motorcycle accident in 1996,” he said before showing off his scar across his abdomen. The car ran me over twice. The first time was over my body and the second time it stomped on my head.”

Eddie, who said his last name was Lover,” said that accident left his left side of his body paralyzed for months and he still hasn’t fully recovered.

The bus drivers are always considerate when he steps on to the bus, he said, making sure he sits down before the bus moves. Eddie doesn’t work. He goes on the bus to roam around New Haven and to keep himself busy.

He’s usually greeted by friends when arriving at a stop and tries to talk to every female he sees, Eddie said.

I don’t like staying at home all day. I’ll go on the bus, flirt with the girls a little bit, say what’s up’ to the guys and keep going,” he said.

After surviving his motorcycle accident, Eddie said he’s been trying to make the best of things and enjoy life.

I do believe in God,” he said. I do believe that God gave me a second life, and I’m going to enjoy it.”

The CT Bus Diaries project is a collaboration among 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.

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