Originally Posted by noglider

This is a factor for some people, but it's entirely unfair to say it's the only reason for all people.

We moved from the suburbs (back) to the city last year. I'm still taking in impressions. In the city, people put up with a lot more discomfort. We walk in the rain. We walk a long way to the supermarket and carry stuff by hand. We stand up for long periods on mass transit. I'm sure this is correlated with lower obesity rates in the city than in suburbs. In the suburbs, people asked me why I didn't drive distances of a mile or two, when I was walking. They considered it punishing to walk distances like that. And I also fell into the trap sometimes, not wanting to walk when driving a mile was just so easy. Since it is the default way to get around, doing anything else is bound to bring up questions.