[jyl]

No, I would always want to have a car, but I would drive it just for fun and not for 5-days-week necessity.

Come to think of it, that's what I mostly do. I take BART or bus to work, the P-car gets driven on weekends. I do usually drive a beater car the 1+ mile to the BART station, although sometimes I walk it. I might walk more (great for losing weight) or look into riding my bike (steep hill, though).

If a region has good (comfortable, reliable, safe, convenient) public transit, then as car traffic gets worse, more people will pick the alternative of public transit. And it won't be a hardship at all, actually it is a pleasure. Sit cursing in traffic/pay $20 for parking or read/snooze on a BART train? Hardly a tough choice to me.

The problem is that most mass transit systems are underfunded and can't extend out as far as they should. Even in the SF Bay that's true.