The stigma is true, but is also somewhat of a self-fulfilling prophesy (at least in much of the US), in that if you can afford not to take public transport, you probably wouldn't want to.<p>The one time I rode the bus where I live (for about 1.5 miles), my experience was as follows: Around 1pm, I wait at the bus stop for about 5 minutes and start talking to the other guy waiting. The bus comes and we get on. On the bus the guy tells me he just got out of jail and has been working at Wal-Mart for 2 weeks. A guy gets on at the next stop and starts yelling at the driver, who then pulls the bus over. The driver and the passenger get into a fist fight and the driver shoves the guy out of the door and tells him to go fuck himself. Then I get off the bus at the next stop and walk to the car rental place as quickly as I can (my destination).<p>Certainly my experience was unique and depended on the part of town, but it didn't inspire me to ride the bus again. I commute about 98% of the time by bike. When I lived in Europe I rode the bus every day and didn't think twice about it.