> This is odd to me. This is not a long distance. Is there zero transport infrastructure where you live?

There is, in fact I lived a 5 minute walk from a bus stop and worked near a subway stop. My commute was:

  1)  5 minute walking    
  2) 15 minutes bus to end of subway line  
  3) 25 minutes subway to transfer
  4) 10 minutes subway to stop near the office 
  5)  5 minutes walk 

Driving with no traffic would be close to 20 minutes, but 45-75+ minutes during rush hour. Taking transit ends up being reasonably time competitive, but far more enjoyable.