As someone who switched sides from the car to the anti-car crowd, I believe that in most ways you're less free with vehicle ownership, as you wind up more locked into "the system" than as a public transportation user.
The system being insurance, parking tickets, revenue grabbing speeding tickets and tolls, fluctuating gas prices, frivolous lawsuits, fender benders and body shops, and so on. People behave at their worst given the psychological distance that their metal box provides them. Not to mention just having to drive the damn thing when you could spend your time focused on something else!
The one big exception that I see is - dun dun dun - global pandemic time. Temporarily, I appreciate the barrier between myself and my fellow citizen. But I just went out and rented a cheap one, and will rid myself of it once the risk of contagion subsides.
Re-reading the end of the "Lemmings" guy's comment more closely, there's one other point that I would like to speak to - After traveling around the world extensively for 100% of the last two years, I definitely prefer public transit in almost every form over driving.
However, one good thing about the U.S. that is true of few other places, is the ability to go on super long road trips, seeing tons of the countryside, and getting far away from other people. This is truly a benefit and a joy.
However, it also comprises 5% of the driving that I wind up doing, the other 95% being shitty commutes and errands fees and tolls and road rage. And finding parking! No need to find parking when using public transit.
The system being insurance, parking tickets, revenue grabbing speeding tickets and tolls, fluctuating gas prices, frivolous lawsuits, fender benders and body shops, and so on. People behave at their worst given the psychological distance that their metal box provides them. Not to mention just having to drive the damn thing when you could spend your time focused on something else!
The one big exception that I see is - dun dun dun - global pandemic time. Temporarily, I appreciate the barrier between myself and my fellow citizen. But I just went out and rented a cheap one, and will rid myself of it once the risk of contagion subsides.