don't take a bus

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Since I can't drive, I'm stuck coping with what's got to be the worst public tranportation system in the history of the world. I have to consider the logistics of a simple trip to the grocery store as the buses are practically non-existant on nights and weekends and are so slow it takes an hour to make a 15 minute trip. That is if they go to that particular area at all as bus routes rarely go beyond the inner-city. I've had to turn down so many good jobs because there was no bus service available.

Forget about transfers. The buses run when they want to, about 30-60 minutes apart, and if you miss the bus you were supposed to transfer to, you're stuck waiting for eternity for the next one with crackheads and what-not walking up and down the street.

Oh, and don't forget to carry pepperspray because you'll need it to fend off some pervert on the bus staring at you.........while masturbating. (happened to me more times than I can count)

More aspies should get a driving license. Is it really so difficult for so many of you? I got mine after 35 lessons. Each lesson was 30 minutes if I remember correctly.

Buses are getting worse.
On the ones have to use,they nearly always have people playing music full blast through their mobile phones,people shouting,screaming kids in pushchairs/prams blocking the walkway,abusive
groups of young people sat at the back of the bus-drivers will usually not do anything due to the problem of getting stabbed-other passengers wont help,the spaces between the rows of seats are stupid for anyone who is tall.
Try to get the ring and ride instead when can-or taxis,earplugs only manage to soften some of their noise,without them could not use busier public transport.
Trains are good because they are more predictible and s.worker/carer gets on free as well but the outside noise gets strong.

For some reason I love the bus, I get terrified, but I love watching all the weird people and the way they work..

Got my license too, but need to get enough cash to fund the vehicle..

Anyway with music in my ears, the bus is a joyous adventure, I get to study people and not feel pressured at the same time, without music it can be a bit difficult.

This is in Perth though, maybe our whole transport system is a bit more... slow paced?

I was at penn station in Newark, NJ once!! !! CROWDED!! !! !!

BTW you think that buss is bad? Try taking the metro from "Foggy Bottom"(YEP, that IS the name! When they first went there it was a valley and I guess there was a lot of fog), in Wasington DC at rush hour!! !! !! Foggy bottom is one of the closest stations to the federal triangle(The triangle formed by pennsylvania ave(where the whitehouse is), and two other streets, and the whitehouse is pretty much in the center of the sharpest point as I recall.), and is near George Washington University Hospital and in George Washington University, AND is about in the middle of the blue and orange lines, so it is VERY busy!

One time, FIVE groups of people went in AFTER they said the doors were closing. At that point, I ACTUALLY told people "LOOK AT THE MONITOR!! !! !! ! WE HAVE BEEN HERE 30 minutes ALREADY! Do you REALLY want to just make EVERYONE, INCLUDING YOURSELF uncomfortable?!?!?" LUCKILY, they LISTENED! It turns out someone got very sick, and the whole network got shut down for almost an hour. Still, one person was pushing me the whole way because he was only able to get about 2cm from the door! I was standing an ackward way to TRY to have at least a FEW inches around me. LUCKILY, I am on the upper end of average as far as height, so I could breath a bit better.

BTW This is ONE of the compromises I had to make that makes me seem less autistic. There WAS a time I would actually wait for it to near empty, and shift to maintain my space. I was ALSO diligent and nice, TO A FAULT and my own detriment. TO THIS DAY I basically wait, and walk around when I shop, or walk on the street, etc....

It is SO unusual that, when I saw a woman doing that in Washington DC, I INSTANTLY wanted to meet her. I never even got to see her face. 8-( I figured she wouldn't appreciate a stranger approaching her like that EVEN though it was almost like I was following in her very footsteps! NOT because I was following her, and NOT because we were merely going to the same train, but because SOMETHING was causing us to follow the SAME program! We EACH reacted to the SAME "obstacles" in the SAME way! Others were going the SAME way, but walked VERY differently.

Steve

BTW IRONIC! I just noticed you had DC as your location! I went there to work at the american red cross. They REALLY like me, so I may be back there sometime. Do you have any AS groups there? I'm VERY curious! Some jerk posted an insulting statement on a board a while back. When I researched what little he said, I thought MY GOD! That is the final piece! I think I FINALLY understand EVERY little problem, or strangness I have EVER had! Nothing else fit! One was due to a magnesium deficiency, and the way I handled it, but there were some things left, and AS is a perfect fit. It even explains things I never wondered about. I just didn't try to find the reason for GOOD things that happened, or things I figured were due to not having a father for a time, etc...

Steve

travelled Greyhound from Austin, TX to DC. That was a nightmare, but a minor one compared to the 2-3 OKC->Vancouver-and-back trips I've done (again, Greyhound).
I'll tell you one thing... whoever designed the seating arrangement was a midget. I'm 6 foot and lemme tell you, there's nothing quite like having your knees jammed into your pelvis for 3 days straight.
Overall, I prefer to drive myself. I stop when *I* want, go where I want, etc.

AW,

COME ON! Who said Aspies can't drive?

I see NOTHING in the definition that prevents it, and I have no problem!

Actually, I DO have a wierd way of driving. I try to give the car several feet on all sides, ALMOST like it was an extention of ME! THAT could be an aspie trait. ALSO, half the time it is like ANOTHER person is driving. I could almost go asleep, and just wakeup at my destination. OBVIOUSLY, I don't REALLY go to sleep at the wheel. It's just a bit odd perhaps. POSSIBLY an aspie trait. STILL, there HAVE been times I have driven with as little as 4" TOTAL free space. But I generally don't park in small spaces, and actually go out of my way to find 3 empty spaces. Getting out isn't always that easy, but it makes it a LOT easier to get into.

As far as driving, I am a good driver. I RARELY stop short, have had few accidents, and I think all but one was a setup. ALL were bumper denters. OK, ONE ripped my fender off, but WHAT AN EXPERIENCE! People ask me how fast I think I was going, and I say ZERO!! ! I was at a dead stop! The other person was at fault.

When I first started driving, I had a kind of trepidation on the freeways. ALSO, you have to get aggressive. Admitedly, I have been passive on much that I have done much of the time. THAT is possibly an aspie trait. I had to FORCE myself to be more aggressive. Otherwise, you will be ALWAYS taking right turns, driving sidestreets, and having horns honk. Today, I USUALLY PREFER freeways. Things like the 101(?) onramp by the 405(?) STILL give me pause, but I went that way nearly every day for about 5 years, and not ONE mishap! (As I recall, it is the 101/134/210 AKA Ventura freeway, and 405 AKA Sandiego Freeway in California. I haven't driven that area for almost 9 years)

ALSO, I DO have an automatic transmission. That makes some things easier, and takes your mind off the engine RPMs and clutch.

So what is keeping YOU from getting a license?

Steve

I have no problem driving, pretty good. I don't like driving fast, thus no longer like driving on interstates. But I'm very good at directions, even when lost.
My husband is a great driver but can't find new places, can't read a map.
I have a friend who can't drive and can't even ride a bike, it's too fast. He walks, rides and hitches to everything.