The night shift: Transit workers keep system running while city sleeps
By David Karp, Vancouver Sun
September 1, 2009

METRO VANCOUVER --

…. Saini moved to Winnipeg from India in 1986. With his university education, he had aspirations to become an RCMP officer, but couldn’t get hired because he wasn’t a citizen at the time.

Saini’s friend found him a job as a truck driver. He also did time as a 7-Eleven clerk. He spent six years in Winnipeg and three in Toronto before landing in Vancouver, where he has been driving buses for the last 10 years.

Driving buses keeps Saini closer to home than trucking did, which is important now that he has a young family.

“It’s my choice to work nights right now,” he says. “I have a small child at home — three-and-a-half right now. You can’t leave her with a babysitter. It’s too expensive.”

Working the night shift allows Saini to care for his daughter, Sabiha, while his wife works at a bank during the day. Saini’s wife takes over the child-care duties once Saini leaves for work.

The lifestyle has its ups and downs. After Saini’s shift ends at 3:45 a.m., Saini heads home and is usually in bed by 5:30. He wakes up whenever his daughter does.

“My little one sleeps to 11 o’clock, sometimes 1,” he says. Saini drops Sabiha off at her afternoon preschool, often returning home afterwards for a quick nap before picking her up. That doesn’t leave much time to see his wife.

“She comes home at 6 p.m. and I’m ready to go [to work]. So it’s tough,” he says. “It would be nice to spend more time with the family.”….