In a car oriented society, there's obviously going to be an inherant bias against mass transportation. People want their freedom to move about whenever they wish, even if it means they may end up sitting in traffic for hours at a time. As long as they have the illusion of freedom, they'll be willing to pay for it.
But there are ways right now to make mass transportation more reliable and much more attractive to those who would never dream of ever getting out of their cars.
It's just a matter of imagination and putting the technology to work.
For example, what if GPS technology were used at bus stops to notify people how much longer it would be until the bus arrived? A system could be set up so that people could know the location of the bus, updated in real time, giving information regarding the bus's distance from the bus stop, along with the approximate waiting time.
Or perhaps, the technology could be connected in some way to participating user's cell phones, so that they could receive a text message or some kind of alert whenever the bus gets to be within a two mile radius of where they are. That way, you wouldn't have to wait out in the cold, always wondering if the bus is a going to be a little early or a little late, and you could instead finish drinking your cup of coffee in the comfort of your home, and then time it just right so that you could be at the bus stop whenever the bus arrived.
Google is already doing remarkable things with GPS location technology, with its latest innovation, google ride finder http://labs.google.com/ridefinder where you can locate a taxi, a shuttle or a limousine in select cities across the U.S., with locations of the vehicles constantly updated in real time, so that you know which vehicle is located nearest you.
Similar programs and information systems could even be applied to people who are interested in developing carpooling, vanpooling, or rideshare programs.
The technology for making mass transportation a feasible, cost-effective and attractive alternative is out there. It's just a matter of whether or not we're going to have the imagination and the initiative to use it.