I agree it varies by place. I live in Charlottesville, and it is not very plausible if none of your friends have a car. The public transit is only convenient in

I agree it varies by place. I live in Charlottesville, and it is not very plausible if none of your friends have a car. The public transit is only convenient in downtown and in UVA, but none of the supermarkets are inside the city. Supermarkets, many restaurants, and malls are all along the state high way. It is ridiculous for a walker, because sometimes you cannot walk across the street to get to the McDonald's right in your eye sight. No crosswalk for a few miles. Walmart is 15 minutes drive away from the city. But to take busses, you will need about 45 minutes to an hour to get there,depending on your timing. There are closer grocery stores, but the busses still take much much longer than a car. I will be willing to ditch my car anytime, if either there is a grocery store in city, or a faster public transportation method is available.