6 days ago
‘People say thank you': French expat left stuned by these common Australian public transport customs
A European expat residing in Brisbane has been left stunned by Australians' extremely courteous behaviour while catching public transport.
The prominent social media content creator, posting under the name "Immis of Oz", was impressed to see Australians lining up to catch busy city buses, and was left perplexed that people go as far to thank the bus driver.
The young woman, who has resided in Australia since 2018 after moving from France, was amazed to learn that Australians queue for the bus depending on who arrived first, and said it gave her a significant culture shock.
'People line up when they take the bus in the order of who arrived first, so if you're first you're at the top of the line, but if you are last you are at the end,' she said.
'No one is trying to pass in front of you because they were late,' the women added.
Aussies were left astounded that anyone would find the practice unusual, with one user asking 'so what do other countries do? Just push and shove to get on the bus?'
Another commenter stated 'it's kind of sad when a cultural shock is that people are polite and courteous', whilst a separate user said 'I'm shocked your shook. How else do you do it? Push in? Be rude?'
She said she understood her remarks may be perceived as odd by Aussies, but reiterated that the public transport system in Europe was another beast entirely.
'It sounds so silly, but it actually was shocking to see that people were civilised, so when you come here you have to do the same thing, don't be the one person that doesn't,' said Immis.
She was even more taken aback by the fact that Aussie public transport users thank the bus driver after their trip.
'People say thank you when they exit the bus, like one by one they tap the card and they say thank you, thank you, like really?', she marvelled.
'Why is everyone else not like this in 2025?' the girl asked.
Her second observation ruffled far more feathers throughout the comment section, with users left dumbfounded that thanking a bus driver was not a universal practice.
'Of course we thank the drivers! They did the driving for us,' one Aussie said, while another stated 'it's not hard to thank someone for providing you a service, it takes 2 seconds'.
Others were evidently unaware that Australians had an international reputation for being kind and gracious, with a commenter stating, 'who knew with all of our crassness and casual lifestyle we were also courteous and civilised'.
Another asked 'were other countries not raised with manners?'
