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 don't understand why anyone would care whether complete strangers thought they were poor or rich 😂. Pre working from home, I used to do a park and ride (getting a bus in an expensive suit etc) because it cost 3 pounds for a bus journey and parking was free. In contrast, parking in city centre would cost between 15-25 pounds each day and take longer due to traffic and lack of spaces. It was a no brainer really... I was getting richer by saving about 20 quid a day 🤣.

Also I would never ever get a car on finance or HP . All fur coat and no knickers so to speak

Awful snobbery involved. One of my friend's DD calls them 'peasant wagons' How disgusting is that. I'd love a good bus service near me

I’ve heard this said a lot! Find it bizarre!

In my experience it isn't just poor people who use buses....but it is mostly people who can't afford to run a car or can't drive
If you were to do a quick poll on the bus tomorrow and ask who had a car at home but chosectobuse the bus it would be a very small proportion. If you asked them if they had a car and could drive would they use the car instead....most. if youvsaid why don't you have a car/drive most would say money.
You might get a slightly different response from pensioners.

Proud bus wanker here. Where I live the bus is cheap (all fares were capped last year at max. two zones, so my 25 minute trip to work costs $4 (about $2.27). Buses are usually on time (or at worst within five minutes), and I get to read my book (or play on my phone) in peace for a bit. I will never understand why people are so obsessed with driving if there is decent public transport! Why pay more to stress out in traffic when you could be driven? Oh and I'm not poor either.

What a nasty person! We often use public transport when others would drive. We have two cars but why would you deal with traffic, parking hassles etc. when you don’t have to. I do however have horrible memories of growing up in Ireland waiting hours in the cold and rain for buses that never showed up, luckily public transport where we live now is decent.

I get buses sometimes (not to work as I WFH but in your situation I might do). Better for the environment. I'd use them a lot more if they were convenient for me. And I'm not what anyone would call rich but I'm not skint by any stretch either. Snobbery at its finest.

Yep, DM has plenty of money and an Audi in the garage, but takes the bus into town 9 times out of 10 because a) it’s free, and b) it drops her off right in the town centre, not miles away wherever she can find a parking space.

It’s a no brainer for me £300 a month on car plus the associated costs of insurance petrol and maintenance or a free bus and tram pass from work. Yes sometimes the buses cock up but the cost of a taxi now and then is a lot less than running a car

Many rich people use their money wisely, tell her. In your place I’d definitely take the bus option. It’s more convenient and cheaper. Your relative must be very insecure to care about people commenting on her transport choice.

Poor people walk

My boss catches the same bus as me. It stops 80m from my house, about 250m from hers. Mine is a two bed semi costing bugger all for the area, hers is a six bed palace (to me, I know on mumsnet that's just a little pied a terre compared to the holiday home) on an exclusive private estate.

My travel costs me less than £100 a month. How much does it cost to buy a new electric car (ULEZ coming in at £12.50 a day soon), parking permit, insurance, repairs and maintenance, tax (if they're VED free now, they certainly won't be once they're the only vehicles), cleaning and everything else involved with owning a vehicle?

Pretty much all staff at the hospital I used to work at had to get the bus, there was nowhere near enough parking for everyone.

I couldn't be bothered even having a conversation with someone who talks like that. She sounds stupid.

I think I would be tempted to walk if my bus journey was just 10 minutes.
Nothing against Buses, but walking would be healthier and free 😀

I always liked taking the bus, but some people on the made me genuinely scared (sexual harassment, people on drugs, physical fight). I am based in Birmingham and sitting on a bus can be so rough.

I feel more secure in the comfort of my own car.

I think it's idiotic to say that only poor people take the bus. Some people might not have a driving license, are scared of driving or might do it for environmental reasons.

Are you sure she was being serious and not tongue in cheek? It’s a well known Thatcher quote:

Margaret Thatcher is supposed to have said that "If a man finds himself a passenger on a bus having attained the age of 26, he can count himself a failure in life."

We were much richer before we moved here and had to run two cars instead of hopping on buses and trains. They're not even fancy cars.

The bus service round our string of small villages is an absolute lifeline. It drops me off right in the village 2 minutes from my house and takes me right to the centre of town, all in under 20 minutes. From there I can catch the train to London and be there in 30 minutes. The logistics of doing that by car would be hugely inconvenient and the parking in a jammed car park would add at least half an hour and cost £££ to land me nowhere I actually want to be.

I have a very nice car but it's mainly for visiting friends who aren't on a bus route.

Our neighbours regularly take the bus to the station when they set off to their 2nd home, and for their many trips abroad.

We have some extremely wealthy villagers who live in large country houses worth millions and they are frequently to be found chatting to other villagers at the bus stop.

Our many retired friends who are very well off choose to take the bus ALL THE TIME. Yes, for them it's free, but it's the convenience that appeals, and the desire to use the bus so the service keeps on going. To lose it would be a disaster for many older villagers who rely on it to get to the shops and doctor / hospital.

OP your relative sounds truly awful. How embarrassing for her that she goes around saying such a ridiculous yet awful thing. Says a lot about her, and nothing about the huge variety of savvy people who travel by bus.

We no longer get the bus to and from Birmingham, because it's too rough and rammed on our 45 min route.

We witnessed lots of aggro, fights, weed smoke filling the upper deck (but nowhere to move to), abuse and being threatened by a gang of Y12 school girls that they would "cut me up'. The final straw was being hemmed in last year, with my son, while some lowlife spent the whole journey calling women cunts and going into graphic detail about oral sex, along with his drug dealing tips. It was horrible.

My son still has to get two buses (when they show up) from school sadly, including that route.

I would love to get the bus, if I felt safe, but even the drivers for National Express West Midlands have had enough of the abuse. Their partners were on FB talking about the lack of drivers, which is a huge issue here, being due to how they are routinely abused by passengers.

We only have one car so my partner uses the bus regularly and there is never any issues with it. He gets a subsidised monthly pass from his work it's £38 per month which is amazing value and a lot better than us thinking of buying another car.

I'm a high earner and use the bus whenever I can, especially if it means I can have a few drinks and not drive on evenings and weekends.

Some people have got such high opinions of themselves and such fragile egos. Ugh.

I saw your post after I posted about how disorderly and dangerous Birmingham buses are (certainly on my route) and how scared I feel. I think many on here would be shocked at how rough they are and how the drivers daren't tackle it, for fear of being assaulted and/or abused.

Might be down an unlit country lane - DM’s bus route is lovely to walk in summer, but really dangerous in the dark or bad weather when cars won’t be able to see you (no pavement).

Also ten minutes in a bus down a B road is about 6 miles… quite a long round trip on foot if you just wanted to go to the shops.