Let me weigh in as a former Certified Ophthalmic Technician. Progressive lenses ARE bifocals without the lines. Because of the way they are made, they really are a tri-focal. They have a real advantage over the old bifocal in that 1. there is no line to make you look or feel "old" and 2. the lens gradually changes from top to bottom to make it easier on the patient.
I have a pair that I wear when I'm not wearing my contacts. Truth is EVERY person, by age 45, needs a little help reading small print. I've met the occasional person who was able to stave it off until age 50 or so, but, it is just part of the natural aging process, with the lens in your eye not being able to contract as much as it used to to help you read at near. Near-sighted people can usually just take their glasses off and read, but far-sighted people are just screwed and will have to have the progressives or bifocal, because taking their glasses off just makes the problem worse.
Me, I still wear contacts and don't need reading glasses. I also have astigmatism. The reason I don't need reading glasses is I do what is known as a "mono-fit". My dominate eye wears a distance contact lens (I'm near-sighted) and my other eye wears a contact lens that is undercorrected by about +1.75 diopters. So, I see far away with my left eye and read at near with my right eye. Took about a week to get used to and I've been doing that for about 7 years. There are certain things that can cause a person not to be able to tolerate that, but most (about 70%) do very well with it.
I don't know your situation exactly enough to say if you can handle it, but, if you don't want glasses and would rather have contacts, that's one way to go. If you want the glasses, well progressives are leaps and bounds above the old "lined" bifocal and you will adjust to them in no time...:)
Next up..in about 30 years or so...."so you have cataracts!"...:)