The speed advantage of cursive is mostly wasted if you write by moving your fingers. You constantly have to lift your pen from the paper when you reach the end

The speed advantage of cursive is mostly wasted if you write by moving your fingers. You constantly have to lift your pen from the paper when you reach the end of your range of motion, so you might as well use a more legible style like italic. To get the most from cursive you need to write using your shoulder muscles, and AFAIK this is never taught in schools. I suspect most people never realize it's possible. I certainly didn't as a child, and therefore cursive seemed like a waste of time.