&gt; In all the countries where the share of public transportation is significant, the main reason is economical. Gas is more expensive in the EU, free parking is scarce, wages are lower, etc. Actually walkable cities help, but it&#x27;s not like europeans couldn&#x27;t find a use for a car if they could easily afford one.<p>No, the main reason is government policy, most obviously in town planning.  There&#x27;s simply no place to park, and enough traffic that the journey is neither fast nor relaxing.  The result is that people who could easily afford to (e.g. my friends working at Google or Facebook, or in finance) don&#x27;t own cars, and use public transport to get to and from work.<p>Walk round the suburbs of European cities on a weekday, and you&#x27;ll see lots of parked cars, in rich and poor areas. People own them, but don&#x27;t find them the best way to get to work. They use them at the weekend.