I used to live in China where taxi usage was much more ubiquitous, and…you really live to live in a world where you aren’t expected to live in a car, be it with public transit (Europe, Japan) or public transit + lots of taxis (China) or tuktuks or whatever. But yes, your hobbies tend to be different and adapted, bikes, for example, get you places, and are not taken places, or you get them on the train which actually hits the trail head you want to use. You rent the kayak on site, and there is always a place to do that because lots of other people are in the same car-less boat as you are.
You mention American at the end of your comment, but the rest of the world isn’t the same. Waymo doesn’t really have to limit itself to the states once they get the concept worked out.
Having to depend on crappy rented sports equipment sounds miserable. Maybe people in the rest of the world will tolerate that but I want no part of it. I'll continue buying my own personal large vehicles so that I can fill them with as much stuff as I want.
When I'm out doing something, the car also serves as a reasonably secure private locker where I can store things without carrying them around.
Sure, I don't imagine they care much about changing everyones opinions. What will happen is your kids and grand kids will reach an age where they would need to get a driving license but won't see the point because they've already been using robo-taxi's for 5 or so years already.
Hell there's people who just use uber exclusively now.
Unlikely. One kid already has a drivers license and uses it frequently. I'll make sure the other kid gets one as soon as she's eligible.
Not every young person spends all day hiding in their room, doom scrolling on social media. Some of them have to get to sports practice with bulky equipment in places that public transit and robo-taxis don't go.
You just live in a world where that is possible and common. I just mentioned that much of the rest of the world isn’t like that all. Japan, for example, has trains/trams straight to campgrounds, or at least buses. They still manage with sports somehow, but you can imagine that the dynamics are very different than from what you are used to.
You are an American and have that privilege. If we granted that privilege to everyone else, the world probably couldn’t handle it, self driving taxis or not.
What’s more I don’t think we will have that privilege for long, personal transportation is a luxury in most of the world, it is becoming a luxury here also. We will adapt though like everyone else has.
This will work for some people in some sports, but it's hardly a universal solution. Many activities like rock climbing or backcountry hiking/skiing, will never have good public transport access.
Renting gear is fine for casual users, but serious practioners in almost every sport are very particular about their gear.
You mention American at the end of your comment, but the rest of the world isn’t the same. Waymo doesn’t really have to limit itself to the states once they get the concept worked out.