Good read. ~~Bill Bryson is British though, so he grew up with a generation accustomed to not seeing public transport as a dirty word.~~~ Edit: Nope, he just has a good british accent. nvm,
When I visited LA, I was amazed at how good the public transit system there is. A bus driver would literally wave people through if they didn't have the right fare, and would literally wrangle wheelchair users into their seat at the cost of their own backs. Yet, there was always this feeling that the people who used the bus were less than scum....
... no other country has this stigma when it comes to using public services.