Anxiety travelling on public transport...

Due to my driving anxiety for which I haven't drove for a year or two, I rely on bus/train for work.

I kinda prefer/enjoy it, it's nice.

Anyhow, the bus journey takes me through the centre of town with shops etc. Now recently, an old school acquaintance has recently opened up his place of work in this busy area of town and where the bus passes in the evenings on the way home.

Now, I get anxious because I fear he'll see me on the bus and next time I see him or if he says my brother, he'll make some remark about it. I'll stick my line of "I can't be bothered to drive, lazy etc" to hide my driving anxiety but it's getting to the point where I'm trying to sit on the bus where I can hide or try and delay my return home so I can get a later bus when the shop will have closed..

I dislike travelling on trains when school is out and hoards of kids pile onto the carriages. Brings up some very bad memories of my school days.

In case you do have to provide an explanation (which you don't), just tell him you prefer taking the bus because driving makes you nervous. There's nothing wrong with that, lots of people feel the same way. And if it's cheaper than paying for gas, then tell him it's cheaper and thus you prefer it.

Peak hour trains in particular do get on my nerves. You're surrounded by people and you can't look anywhere without appearing like you're staring at someone, so I inevitably end up shifting my eyes all over the place.

I agree with Sacrament. It being cheaper is actually a legitimate reason why people use trains/bus over driving themselves, even when they can. I've noticed that by the bus stop in my city, one girl regularly drives to the stop, parks her car, and rides the bus.

And remember, if he is working, he isn't staring out the window all day. It's pretty unlikely that he'd even notice your bus anyway, much less be able to clearly make you out. Given that he'll be in the shop and that it tends to be harder to see inside cars/buses than it is to see outside of them.

Yeah, he probably can't catch sight of you. If I saw someone I knew on a bus I wouldn't bring it up anyway. If he does, you don't need to explain, but if you want you could also say you're too tired to drive or any other reason that's been listed.

I somewhat prefer public transportation to cars too (at least, when I was getting out of the house weekly I did). If they're super crowded I imagine they could be hell, but where I live there's not that much clamor. I trust a stranger to drive me around more than the people I know

Its tricky at times I know.But life really is too short worrying about what strangers and aquaintences might be thinking.Anyway people are usually too caught up in their own thoughts to think deeply about why you would be on a bus for example.If by pure chance however unlikely he/she did tell your brother about you being on a bus,would the world end?No it would not.You seem to be worrying unnesseralily about unimportant things.Unless there is some problem with your brother you had not mentioned,then try to worry less.Life is easier that way.

Thanks for the advice guys - trying, still, to try and hide on the bus and hope that the shop is closed/or we go straight past and don't wait for the traffic lights..