>>1958856>America became the greatest country on earth on the back of rail when it's population was 10x lower.Yeah rail was great when the alternative was 6 months overland in a covered wagon.
People invest in cars and fuel because cars are useful. Roads are cheap (note: I mean ALL roads not just the interstate highways railredditors use for cost-compares). Roads can be lightly maintained or even just dirt and gravel. The US road network is massive, it's easy to find a route from almost anywhere to almost anywhere. No rushing for schedules or missing connections times. No dragging your luggage around a terminal, waiting on cold stone benches during your layover. No passengers smelling of musk and curry crowding your space and no coofers in the seat behind you spreading germs. You can buy groceries in bulk, you can haul furniture, you can access downtown parking garages or wilderness trailheads. And so on.
