Road design, transportation and walkability

[plam]

I live in a suburb and as I type this from my home office, I look out the window and see a nice young family with a young child going for a walk with their dog.  They look quite happy.  There experience doesn't seem to be unpleasant or intolerable.

Oh yeah and about 20 min. ago there was a group of three teenagers that went riding by on their bikes.  They also looked like they we enjoying themselves.

Recreation is great, no one would argue with that. But it's limited. The question, though, is: can you live your life without a car? Walking and biking should be usable as primary means of transportation, not just as recreation.