It is very different in the US. US suburbs were designed around the automobile, and their original raison dêtre is to be accessible only via car: they were sited just far enough by from the nearest urban area (or adjacent suburb) to allow predominate free-standing houses with yards.

"Suburb" has shades of meaning here in the U.S. too, but I think most people think of the sprawling new city suburbs when they use the term. When I lived in New York, I lived in a small suburb, but we had a cute little downtown and regional rail access to New York City. We rarely drove there. But most U.S. suburbs are not like that. They're like my parents' suburb in Virginia: where you can't really even leave the cul-de-sac on foot because you quickly hit a major road with no sidewalks.