A rodoviária fica longe, então eu prefiro pegar o trem até o centro.

The bus station is far away, so I prefer to take the train downtown.

Breakdown of A rodoviária fica longe, então eu prefiro pegar o trem até o centro.

• eu: I
• preferir: to prefer
• então: so
• até: to

Questions & Answers about A rodoviária fica longe, então eu prefiro pegar o trem até o centro.

What exactly does rodoviária mean? Is it a train station?

No. Rodoviária is a bus terminal or long-distance bus station. In Brazil, it usually refers to the place where intercity or interstate buses arrive and depart.

So:

• rodoviária = bus terminal
• estação de trem = train station
• estação de metrô = subway/metro station

The word comes from rodovia, meaning highway.

Why does the sentence start with A rodoviária and not just rodoviária?

Because rodoviária is a feminine singular noun, so it takes the feminine singular definite article a.

• a rodoviária
• a estação
• a cidade

Portuguese uses articles more often than English does, especially with places and everyday nouns. So A rodoviária fica longe sounds natural, while dropping the article would usually sound incomplete in normal speech.

Why is it fica longe? Could I also say é longe?