> People often report feeling more attentive to the road while operating a manual transmission, as it requires them to more closely focus on the driving itself, but this isn’t something many people want while driving anymore.

This is something I very much want while driving; it's part of the reason I get around primarily by motorcycle. If driving is too easy, my attention wanders, and that's not really safe. A manual transmission gives me more engagement with the driving process and that helps keep my eyes on the road.