I agree with the spirit of this, but if I didn’t use my car — and this is true for 90% of Americans — I’d have 4-6 fewer hours available in my day, and I’d also probably be dead in a few years as I would be run over by cars.

There is nowhere convenient to walk, and in Florida particularly, one would show up every day drenched in sweat to work. Most places have no work showers, nor are ever likely to have any, so biking or walking is just not an option in Florida unless it’s just a few hundred feet. There are also generally no sidewalks in many places in the US, and none are likely to be put in.

Currently, my commute by car to work is 10-12 minutes. The bus would take between 1.5 to 2 hours, and is not nearly frequent enough. This is the case in all but 3-4 metro areas in the United States (where only about 10% of the population lives). And most people can’t afford to live close to city centers or their jobs. This is only getting worse.

A friend of mine tried cycling for a year or so. He was hit by three cars and hospitalized once. He gave that up pretty quickly.

Not having to use a car is appealing. In fact, really appealing. But it is a fantasy and likely to remain so for a good while yet. This alteration of circumstances would require a huge number of sacrifices from most Americans and make their lives substantially worse in the short to medium term. The thing about human nature is that people tend not to make their lives substantially worse so that someone, someday might benefit (even if that someone is them).

And I know I am not going to spend 4+ hours a day on a bus or die on a bicycle so in 30 years someone can tell me or my partner that it was worth it, because I can tell you it won’t be.