Transit Stories: Jackie Williams
My name is Jackie. I’m in my 60s, and I use transit everyday to get to work, attend meetings, do my grocery shopping, and to visit friends and family. I wasn’t always dependent on transit, but once I made that switch, I noticed all the barriers that exist for where I can go. I live in […]
Transit Stories: Grace Kalmus
Brooklyn, NY I’m Grace, I work at Home Depot and I use public transit to travel to Hempstead Bay in Long Island from Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn. Before the pandemic, the trip to get to work took me roughly three hours, two trains and a bus. By sticking to the bus and subway, I would […]
Transit Stories: Freda Tepfer
(She/Her) | Erie, PA My name is Freda Tepfer. I live in Erie. Growing up in New York City, public transit was my ticket to a world of possibility. I saw sites and met people I wouldn’t have crossed paths with if it wasn’t for transit. These people and places taught me lessons that I […]
Transit Stories: Dena Driscoll
(She/Her) | Philadelphia, PA I am the Director of Development and Communications in a nonprofit, civil rights law firm in Philadelphia and mother of two children. Like many mothers in Philadelphia, I have relied on public transit as our main form of transportation. Over the past decade I have relied on public transit to get […]
Transit Stories: Deborah Olson
Gresham, Oregon I am almost 65 and live alone. I have been disabled for thirty-one years, next month. It is an anniversary I would like to forget. I can walk and I am not in a chair or walker yet. Six years ago I was a half-a-block from a good running bus. And with high […]
Transit Stories: Cynde Soto
Los Angeles, CA Hi, my name is Cynde and I live in a beach town in Los Angeles County California. Riding transit allows me to live independently in the community, which is what we all want to do, right? My wheelchair will not be able to get into a car or a taxi of any […]
Transit Stories: Chris Chavez
Long Beach, California I was born and raised in Long Beach. Like many children here, I had asthma because the air is so polluted. On many indicators of poor air quality, we’re at the top among cities across the country. Asthma is assumed to be something that just happens, but like other respiratory conditions it’s […]
Transit Stories: Chicago College Students
Sarita Cavazos Chicago, Illinois As a full-time college student, owning a personal vehicle has never been fiscally possible. I rely on public transportation to travel to school, work, and extra curriculars. I’m an out-of-state college student attending the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), my family is over a thousand miles away and I live […]
Transit Stories: Carolyn Fowler
Inglewood, California I’m an avid transit rider. Public transit saves me gas, time, and energy. I work as a government affairs advisor for the Los Angeles Unified School District Board District 1. Before the pandemic, I took the bus every day. I either caught the bus on my corner to get downtown or would take […]
Transit Stories: Carden Wyckoff
(She/Her) | Atlanta, GA Transit equity is an issue I work diligently on with many local advocacy organizations in the Atlanta area and MARTA (directly on their writers’ committee). It is essential to me because of my progressive disability. I started using a wheelchair in my early twenties. Traveling long distances got more and more […]
