Ride a bus OR ride on a bus Below is an explanation for "ride" from a dictionary. That means, if you take a bus as a passenger, it's correct to say "ride on a bus", but I saw a lot of "how to ride a bus" guidlines to passengers even on reputable websites. This is confusing. For passengers, is it "ride a bus" or "ride on a bus"? thanks. When you want to say that someone is controlling a horse, bicycle, or motorbike, you can use ride as a transitive verb, with the object coming immediately after it. Whether you ride a motorbike, scooter or moped, get yourself properly trained. However, if you want to say that someone is a passenger in a vehicle, ride must be followed by a preposition.