Homophobia and School -- A Bad Combination

I have a few nagging problems. They involve, as you can see from the title of this post, homophobia and school.

I go to this small charter school where nobody else is openly gay. No one. At all. It's quite dismaying. Most people there are either allies or friendly-neutral-whatever, but there are quite a few not-so-nice people there. You probably know the type. They're mostly the overly-religious sadly-ignorant ones. And this is where my problem lies.

You see, I really hate it when people have the wrong ideas about me. Being open with my school friends about my Specialness (as I have taken to calling it) would do wonders for my morale, and that of other closeted students, if there are any. Don't get me wrong, I am very thankful that my wonderful family has accepted me at the level they have, but I think most people will understand what I mean.

Anyway, the very root of my problem is this: Half of the times I go to class, I have to ride with a homophobic family. I really don't want them to know about my Specialness. But if I came out to anyone, sooner or later the people in question know, and my already torturous rides to school would become even worse. I dread the possibilities. I have to get to school every time, and I have no other way of getting there. So it has come to this:

1: I stay closeted and continue to feel dismally alone until college.

2: I let people know and face the consequences, good and bad, which include but are not limited to: Support from allied friends, being an inspiration for other students who could possibly feel dismally alone too, facing possible bias, and maybe being mocked during the hour-long car trips to and from school.

I'm not sure just how the homophobic family will react, since I am considered a good friend to them. I don't think my chances are that good, though. However, I don't think they're the most homophobic of all homophobes, though, so maybe they could get over it after a while. I do know that it's really wearing to feel so alone at school, though, so I really do want to be open. Does anybody have any advice?

Thank you,
Silent Wolf