Originally Posted by genec

I hear what you are saying... and that greater utility aspect comes from the FACT that many of our cities are designed around the automobile, thus it makes sense to drive in those cities. But if the cities were designed around people... as is the case in some dense urban centers, then the utility of the automobile becomes less and less.

Ultimately one has to wonder what will be more sustainable over the long haul... and keep in mind that the automobile has only been a part of the world for the last 100 years or so... prior to that, walking was used quite a bit more frequently for human transportation needs as were trolleys, carts and other forms of more public transit. The bicycle too has a longer history than the automobile.

So that "utility" you mention is something rather short lived, thus far, in the overall history of man...

I can't help but wonder if future energy needs may dictate other alternatives to the current automobile... and thus be the catalyst for a vastly different environment. There are trends right now in the US that point to less and less driving. We may have already seen "peak automobile."