I'm afraid to ride the bus!

Now that $4 gas is officially here, maybe you're really starting to think about taking the bus to get to and from work.

But maybe the whole process is a bit intimidating? After all, most of us haven't been on a bus since like the sixth grade, right? And it wasn't a heck of a lot of fun back then, either.

Luckily, the KCATA feels this pain. This Saturday, they're holding one of their ''How to Ride the Bus"  events at the 103rd and State Line Price Chopper. Stop by any time between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., they say, and "In 10 minutes, people will be ready to Dump the Pump and ride The Metro like a pro."

And because lots of people share this pain, many have done their best to also offer tips for the rest of us:

• KCATA has a new rider info page.
• eWikiHow has a page called "How to ride a public transportation bus." 
• The Seattle area bus service (metrokc indicates them, not Kansas City) has a similar page, including several informative video clips, at http://transit.metrokc.gov/tops/bus/howride.html .

As always, find the KCATA Metro info here , and look for the JO stops and fares here .