[djmcmath]

Public transport in the US is largely a sad joke. Even places that have systems are generally woefully inadequate. One of the impressions I routinely take away from visits to Europe is the public transport. Rome has subways that go all the way to the beach. There are trains that run every half hour from Naples all the way to Sorrento -- that's like a 3 hour drive, or a 1 hour train ride. You can hop a metro-train from Frankfurt all the way out to the surrounding communities, and the bus schedules are all coordinated with the subway schedule, so it's more efficient. It's just not the same over here.