Yeah buses are the last remaining vestigial public transportation system outside of those major cities. There’s also a few cities that have a light rail system that is functional, provided you live close enough to a light rail stop and your destination is also near enough of light rail stop.

When I was in Denver, I decided to do a thought experiment and see if I could take the bus from where I lived to where I worked. A 20 minute drive with zero traffic is a one hour plus commute with traffic.

If I were to take the bus it would be 80+ stops, four bus transfers, and 2x 25 minute walks through private property and peoples backyards on either side of that bus trip. If I missed one single bus transfer the next bus didn’t come for at least another hour.

Needless to say, using the bus is not a viable way to reliably get to work. So while you can argue that there are buses, and that they do run, it’s not really a realistic public transportation system unless you have no other choice.

Let’s say I want to go to the grocery store. I would need to walk 20 - 25 minutes just to get to the bus stop, Wait 15 minutes to an hour for the bus to arrive, ride a bunch of stops Impossibly transferred to another bus, and finally walk from the bus stop to wherever the store is which could be another 20 - 25 minute walk in places where there are not sidewalks or on the edge of a 4-6 lane Strode. And after I’ve done my shopping I now have to carry all my stuff on the same return trip.

So just to get to the store I’m gonna walk 40 to 50 minutes, ride the bus for an hour, walk through infrastructure not designed for pedestrians, and then carry all my stuff back the same way. Total trip time is anywhere between two and four hours just to go to the store do some shopping and come back.

That’s not really functional public transportation. If you’re an elderly person and you’re 55/60 or older, taking the bus is not really a viable option. fuck you might get a heat stroke while waiting for the goddamn bus.