Only poor people get the bus…

[EmpressOfTheSofa]

..I was told yesterday by a close relative. In the context of mocking me.

I get a bus to work. My bus stop is literally outside my house and ten minutes later it drops me off outside my work. I pay £70 a month for this.

If I drive to work it costs petrol plus £135 a month parking fees, and the closest two car parks are each a ten minute walk from work. It also takes longer to drive because of the one way system/bus lanes. It’s a no brainer.

But I got roundly mocked and told she wouldn’t be seen dead on public transport.

This was in the context of her admiring a new item I’d bought and I said oh funnily enough two separate ladies at the bus stop have also complimented it, she then shrieked with laughter and said there’s a weird contrast between having an expensive X and then getting public transport and that I probably look like a weirdo. That the only people who use buses outside of London are poor people who can’t afford to drive.

She’s bonkers, right? And a tad nasty? I’ve been stewing on this for a couple of days and shouldn’t let her rile me but ffs.

I was paid £300,000 last year, and am typing this from the bus.

I live in Europe. In a very rural location, but where there is an hourly bus to the nearest town from early morning to early evening, and a night bus service until 2 a.m. Buses dovetail with the regional and intercity trains at the larger town.

Here, and in other European countries where I've lived, taking the bus is far from unusual and certainly not a question of "only the poor use the bus." An annual "365" ticket is available, for €365, so commuters can travel for €1 a day. There are regular "car free Friday" days, when travel on all local and regional transport is free. I can travel for over an hour to anywhere in the local area (roughly equivalent to an English county) for about €10 return - €39 pays for an unlimited one-week ticket.

The benefits are not just the cheap prices. The existence of frequent and reliable buses means that living in rural areas remains viable. People can rely on being able to get to work, to school or to the local hospital etc. This removes the pressure on the housing market in the larger towns and keeps the rural villages alive. It means families do not need multiple cars, and of course reduces congestion and pollution.

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That's ridiculous. I am by no means poor and I catch the bus. Nothing wrong with catching the bus at all. I fucking hate snobs like her

Are people still jumping into the thread to tell us how rich they are?

Your relative could almost be my very jealous, & insecure sister, who constantly used to put me down. If you must continue to see the relative, do not give her the satisfaction of knowing that she got to you. Just ignore her, & laugh along with her, it will annoy her so much more.

I can drive, & I sometimes get a taxi, but it’s far cheaper for me to get the bus. Actually I can get to the airport from my home in half hour using a bus & train, & it costs me just £10. When I’m on holiday I often use public transport too. You can go miles for a few quid.

Passing a driving test can often go to a persons head, & all of a sudden they become superior to everyone who can’t or don’t drive. They have no idea how stupid they really are, let her carry on making a fool of herself.

I have an annual bus pass for 50 euros a year through work. I absolutely love it as I take the bus everywhere, no need to worry about parking. I did use to pay more before they started this scheme and I still loved it. The only place I don't take the bus is in the UK - too expensive! I know a few people who think that the bus is for poor people - more fool them!

I take public transport,as do most folk i know. In London public transport use isn’t salary driven

I'd go to work on the bus if they were more reliable and they enforced the rules of passenger behaviour more stringently.

I quite like buses and I love trains I often use a train for work journeys even though I get paid for using my car simply because I like the journey. Nothing to do with being poor (although I am) just buses or trains are sometimes more convenient for me

horribly judgemental !!! Using a bus is better for the planet . Also my mum used to go places by bus and she was luckily very well off . Daft people

Newly rich Cilla Black bought her mother a house as a surprise. Took ma to the house "I can't live here. The bus stop's miles away". Quite right too.

Buses currently have a £2 single , why would you spend more on driving ?

By the way bus passes are set at the female retirement age, I'm 60 next year and won't get one til I'm 65

I have colleagues at work who catch the bus. Sometimes 2 buses in a row don't come so they have to get to work an hour early at times to guarantee getting there on time, and sometimes they're stuck waiting at the bus stop for over an hour waiting to get home.

Taxis are well cheap these days.

I am doing 4 journeys today which would be £8 each by taxi but I am doing them by bus with a £6 all day ticket - a single bus journey is £2. How far will £2 get you in a taxi?

I work 3 miles away but it would take 2 buses to get there. That'd be £8 a day even with the £2 bus tickets, more normally. And it'd take about 40 minutes even if the buses turn up on time. In my car it takes 10-15 minutes depending on traffic and costs about £1 in fuel.

There's so much snobbery! I know perfectly ordinary people who won't take the bus because apparently the passengers smell.
They don't like sharing their space( weird)
Even my daughter ,who I thought I brought up better.will walk a considerable distance any time of day rather than take a bus if her car is in the garage.

Not at all. I'm middle aged and on a good salary. I only just passed my driving test. So I've been using public transport all my life and will certainly carry on doing it when it's more convenient!

I think our nearest bus stop is 5+ miles sways, I’d be super slim if I took the bus everywhere! 😃

Well you saw what happened to the inbetweeners that yelled ‘bus wankers’ out if their car window.

You could cycle 3 miles in 15 minutes and it would be as good as free.