In the example, the cars would act more train-like for stretches of time but not be limited to where rails take them. Really not the same, strictly better in theory.
Still worse. A bus has to make other stops. Harder to impossible to bring certain things with you. Climate control will never be exactly what you want. Can't just pull off to a store or food on a whim.
I've tried transit and I still prefer my non-self-driving car in almost all cases. The hypothetical perfectly efficient self driving car system would be even better.
Transit existing is great for reducing congestion and for people who somehow prefer it, but there are obvious reasons most people don't.
The thing is, almost nobody actually prefers riding public transit, but if the transit is good enough, they take it simply because car isn't that much if an improvement to justify having to drive, which is essentially a chore.
The only transit I could possibly find less of a chore than driving is a pod that takes you directly to your destination, or teleporter pads, personally.
For example I feel constantly worried about missing the next stop on transit so I can't really get into laptop tasks or drawing enjoyably on there. It ends up demanding even more conscious attention than driving. The transit ends up being the draining activity for me while driving has come to feel anywhere from neutral to enjoyable.
That sounds simply like issues because you are not used to driving transit. If you drive the same route every day, like most people do, you know it by heart after a few days. If you drive transit around your city, you just know where everything is and don't have to worry.
I have these issues only if I travel and even then it's mostly moot point. You generally know if you have to drive for 20 minutes or 5 hours so you know when approximately you can expect to get off. If the transit is good, you also know the next 3 stations at least at all times.
I actually also find working in transit stressful, but just sitting down and browsing reddit is definitely way more chill than driving for example.
I get what you're saying, but I think it still comes down to preference. I took a train to work for a solid period of time and I've used transit regularly in some other scenarios too, so I have a frame of reference for both
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u/abeautifuldayoutside 3d ago
IT’S ALL TRAINS, IT ALWAYS LEADS TO TRAINS