The craziest thing to me was recently a twenty year old borrowed money to purchase a stick-drive car when she doesn't drive stick and already had a recent, usable car. Why? Now she's going to have no money for years to come!
Btw, the US is huge. People here don't use enough caution when driving, but it would be impossible for most everyone to hold down a job without a car. Driving is a needed right when it shouldn't be.
I work internationally with a company of americans and the entire company is remote. Every single one of those Americans works from home, so would they still need cars? I know it's not the majority of people, but there's still a large chunk of people who can get to and from work without a car in the US as well.
That whole mindset is foreign to me - I'm an adult which means I can afford to rent any vehicle I need to use, or hire somebody to drive me whenever I want and it's still probably cheaper than owning one vehicle in the long run.
I've lived in Switzerland and all over Asia without owning a car. Loved public transit and never wanted a car.
- Public transit in the US sometimes feels like riding a rolling homeless shelter. I know it's a chicken-and-egg thing, as most people have cars. I have no issue riding public transit in the US, but I couldn't see my parents taking public transit. So having a car is part of becoming like my parents.
- Being able to drive a car (auto or stick) has practical advantages for emergencies. So there's a provider element.
- Having a car is a symbol of independence. People who have cars in the US sometimes have friends asking to bum rides. So not have a car is seen as not being independent.
That's just crazy! It means five people can't drink. All that's needed is maximum one car for five people, maybe two if traveling from dispersed locations. Keep designated drivers to a minimum.
Remember this is America we're talking about. Locations are really, really dispersed. Carpooling 5 people could mean the driver is dropping people off for an hour and a half.
He was very well organized on the public transit front. Like knowing exactly when to leave the dorm to catch the bus without having to stand out in the cold for more than 5 minutes. This is something I didn't master until moving to a city myself.
Now that I've lived without a car for so long I'm not even sure I want another one. Buses, Uber, and rentals fill the void nicely.
That said, where I live, giving up my vechicle would be like just giving up in life. I need a car in the suburbs. I honestly don't know how people do without them, unless they live near good public transportation.
And yes, I guess America is very vechicle centric, but for good reason. They built it so spread out. They built most of our infrastructure like the 50's would last forever. A home, and a car for every American. We would always buy American products. We would never have to live like the rest of the world?
I look for work and apartments within several minutes walk from a major train station.
I can't imagine owning a car - the paperwork, regular checkups, constant looking for parking space, worrying about how to keep the car long term on a long trip overseas. Do I own the car, or does the car own me?
When I have to travel somewhere inconvenient by public transportation I call a taxi or a Uber. I do this maybe once a month or two. If there's an event on a weekend and I could walk there in less than an hour from home, occasionally I'd walk instead of catching a taxi or Uber.
I have visited a city with lacking public transport before, you're right, being unable to drive, and cannot travel anywhere without having to call a Uber every time, even to the corner shop few kilometres away, I feel like I'm trapped.