If people were really smart, particularly in the USA, What do you think they'd stop doing by now?
Giving money to Amazon, Wal-Mart, Microsoft, Google .etc
It's like, you can't have an argument for price gouging, when you're enabling them by spending. If people were smart, they'd stop giving them money 10 - 15 years ago and they'd be right now, trying to reconstruct so they can be more economically friendly than how they are now.
OP mentioned remodeling cities around public transport, I think that also goes for more rural areas. There's a solution for every scale : metro, bus, train, shuttle, etc.
I agree there are solutions, I have lived in places with great options. But getting things changed here is very slow and for now you still can't walk or bike, and there are no buses or trains.