You're comparing living in a car dependant city vs living in car dependant suburbs. It's not going to be meaningfully different. You mention the constant noise,

You're comparing living in a car dependant city vs living in car dependant suburbs. It's not going to be meaningfully different. You mention the constant noise, but what do you think causes it? To see what everyone means by car dependency, you'd need to see the few places that aren't. Here's what a 100% car-free island looks like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWDFgzAjr1k https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWDFgzAjr1k Here are some progressive European cities that have started to undo the damage that's been done by cars: • Freiburg, Germany: https://youtu.be/6Vil5KC7Bl0?t=36 https://youtu.be/6Vil5KC7Bl0?t=36 • Haarlem, Netherlands: https://youtu.be/ztpcWUqVpIg?t=90 https://youtu.be/ztpcWUqVpIg?t=90 • Paris, France: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSQSBoHmG8s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSQSBoHmG8s Check out these background noise levels: • A very busy mixed-use street in Amsterdam: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqQSwQLDIK8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqQSwQLDIK8 • Exiting the train station in Delft, Netherlands: https://youtu.be/CTV-wwszGw8?t=289 https://youtu.be/CTV-wwszGw8?t=289 • Cycling streets in the Netherlands: https://youtu.be/bMJaMy-0ChA?t=242 https://youtu.be/bMJaMy-0ChA?t=242. You can even hear birds chirping at 4:29.