> Ever been to Europe?

Yes, pretty much all my life.

Check out who actually lives in city centers here. Elderly people, rich businesspeople without families etc. ...

In Vienna, where I live, the city center has the following demographics:

- 104m² average flat size, housing 1,89 people.

- 32% population over 60 (highest in Vienna's districts), average age 46,3 (vs. 40,5 for all of Vienna)

- 2,3% of the city's population live there, but only 0,7% of its children (and 2,5% of its cars)

>- 32% population over 60 (highest in Vienna's districts), average age 46,3 (vs. 40,5 for all of Vienna)

Downtown can also be more expensive than peripheral districts, so older people are more likely to afford housing there. That's not because of less cars though.

But for our purposes, Vienna with all its districts, not just the center, is still far less car oriented than the traditional US city and its suburbs.

>2,3% of the city's population live there, but only 0,7% of its children

Just considering all as single-kid families would account for 2.3% "of the city's population" living there but only 1.5% of its children. And tons of families have only one kid (but of course 2 parents, divorced or not), lots have no kids, and tons of adults are not married yet. Add immigrants (who are more often than not male who come to seek work and don't bring children), and one would expect adult populations to be larger than children population in the same area.

That may also have to do with what you get for your money and local walkable access to schools causing families to avoid trying to live in the centres.