In many countries such people use public transportation, but that's crowded and inconvenient for the richer folks who can afford cars.
Why do you think people still have cars in Amsterdam?
In Europe cycling distance to work within a city is as quick as driving. If you aren't quite fit enough you can get an electric bike (very popular amongst the elderly).
I didn't consider the suburbs in my question but in a small to medium sized city (<0.5m) I'd suggest the average commute would be ~8km. That takes ~25mins on a bicycle. Now project a better micromobility infrastructure and cycling looks much more attractive. All those school runs just vanish.
So you'd have to rich and fat to still be driving. ;)
[0] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/may/03/amsterdam-ban-...
Eventually, yes. That is the march of technology. Especially if Elon Musk's bet that it can be done using only cameras is right - then the hardware cost is the same as an iPhone. If LIDAR is also required, it will take longer for the prices to go down.
This year I bought a 2-year old used econobox car (63 horsepower of pure fury). It already came with 360 degree "top-down-view" parking cameras, stereo camera auto emergency braking, lane departure warning, green light departure warning. And it's a mild hybrid. Once the software is developed, it won't take more than a decade to start coming down in price.
I drove a rental Nissan Rogue a few weeks back while we were in DC and it had top-down camera, auto steer, adaptive cruise, heated everything, etc. And that is not exactly the most desirable car you can buy. The technology really has trickled all the way to the bottom, but some of it needs to trickle back up...
And don't forget lack of showers at workplaces. If there wasn't a shower available where I work I definitely wouldn't bike to work.
Obesity is one thing promoting modes of transportation other than driving is a hope to solve; where the developed world is showing highest rates ever and scientific studies showing that the chair of a car is unhealthy.