That's not a fix, though. Reducing the pain of a commute would mean more people would move out to the suburbs, which would grow, which would add to the traffic.

That's not a fix, though. Reducing the pain of a commute would mean more people would move out to the suburbs, which would grow, which would add to the traffic. People are apparently willing to drive 1 hour each way in a normal car, which is a huge pain. I would assume they'd therefore be willing to be driven even further in a self-driving car. You'd end up with an equally unpleasant equilibrium.