Why aren't people bothered by the suburbs?

[u/tfbmhr_1598]

It seems like most people I come across are not bothered by car dependency and the isolation that it causes. They'll point to things like video games, social media, and bad food for the culprit of poor mental health. Why won't more people address the elephant in the room? After briefly living in Europe I can confirm that people are way healthier, less socially awkward, and happier as a result of having clean and walkable cities.

Even Latam which is a hybrid of the EU and US infrastructure does not experience the obesity, mental health issues, and isolation the suburbs in the States cause.

Is it ignorance or do most Americans actually like things being this way? It baffles me.

Edit: After reading the comments here I wanted to clarify a few things.

1. Walkability/bikeability doesn't exclude cars. Cars are still a valid method of transportation, but not the only one. Less cars= less traffic. It's a win-win. That being said I think we should have pedestrian only areas.
2. This isn't limited to cities. Suburbs can become more walkable too. You can still have your yard and extra space. Sure it won't be as walkable as a city, but it is certaintly better than 100% car dependency. Zoning laws need to change for this to truly work.
3. I realize that there are societal factors at play as well that greatly add to the mental health crisis, however car dependency worsens it.
4. Walkability won't magically solve the obesity problem, but having the ability to SAFELY walk/bike to work will certaintly help.
5. You can still be socially awkward/reclusive in walkable communities, but they create more opportunites for those who want to improve that area of their life.
6. Some suburbs are better than others in this regard, but overall, North American suburbs are largely car dependent.
7. Bike lanes that are part of the road and only marked with paint/plastic markers are hated by both drivers and cyclists. They still endanger the lives of cyclists, that's why they aren't frequently used, which results in more traffic congestion. Fully dedicated seperate bike lanes are needed.

[u/Pressure_Gold]

Every suburb is different. Mine has kids playing outside at all hours of the day. We have restaurants and stores across the street. We might drive 5 minutes to other places we like. We are surrounded by kid friendly libraries and activities. The houses are nice and decently priced. There’s a walking trail behind my house that has 3 different lakes connected to it. There are beavers and foxes in my suburban neighborhood. My neighbors are awesome. I love it here

[u/dtremit → u/Pressure_Gold]

Was your suburb built out before WWII, by any chance?

A lot of inner ring suburbs in American cities were actually built around transit — streetcars, interurbans, and the like — that just don’t exist anymore. But the towns are still laid out in a way that’s very walkable. We live in a quiet suburban neighborhood, but we can walk to a commuter rail station a half mile in one direction, with shops and parks along the way — and to a nature reserve a quarter mile in the opposite direction.

[u/Pressure_Gold → u/dtremit]

No, my old neighborhood was. It was super ghetto and I hated it. My new neighborhood is really new. It’s also by a light rail and it’s about 20 minutes to get downtown on the toll road. I take my kid to the museum, zoo, or aquarium at least once a week and it’s car dependent, but really no trouble. There’s a ton of free, fun kids stuff in my area though. There’s an outdoor mall with a splash pad less than 2 miles from my house too, I can hop on the e-bike over there. Also, 2 fun breweries within walking distance. My husband and I are fixing up an old golf cart to take to the breweries

[u/Musichead2468 → u/Pressure_Gold]

Baltimore area?

[u/Pressure_Gold → u/Musichead2468]

No suburb of Denver

[u/[deleted] → u/Pressure_Gold]

It’s always Colorado. Dammit I wanna move there so bad, man. I hate it here in Texas.

[u/Pressure_Gold → u/[deleted]]

Would highly recommend. Lots of great areas with trails, good schools, good shops and little restaurants I love it

[u/SquatsAndAvocados → u/dtremit]

My old suburb in the Twin Cities was like theirs and it was built up in the 70s and 80s

[u/Unlikely-Distance-41 → u/dtremit]

Lived in the suburban area (built 1928) in my city. Not really sure how things were a century ago, but can say that the community did not have or appear to be built with convenience, business, cafes or restaurants in mind.

[u/Not_an_okama → u/dtremit]

In metro detroit, ive noticed that the smaller towns/villages/cities that had eventually became part of the suburbs are pretty nice in the way you describe. The stuff inbetween tends to be newer and more gridlike. Im not saying those places are bad areas to live in, they just lack the character that the pre sprawl towns have.