Shopping would optimally happen by foot or by bike. Somewhat impossible with US zoning laws, but in a decent mixed use neighborhood a grocery store would be a <5 minutes walk from home, with actual sidewalks and no highways in between.
And overcrowded buses happen in underfunded bus systems with not enough capacity or on peak times. Consider increasing the frequency or upgrading to a tram line if your buses are always full
Yes, visiting France, it's amazing to me how local laws have resulted in shopping that's accessible by most via bike/walk/tram (ie, car not needed). I saw dozens of these folks doing that as an activity with their kids on the weekend (of course, French have lots more vacation too so they can afford to combine exercise + commerce).
The captured regulatory system in the US benefits corporations first, and people last.
Yeah in rural areas it's hard to justify building public transport. Villages can still have grocery stores though. But we were talking about cities here
And overcrowded buses happen in underfunded bus systems with not enough capacity or on peak times. Consider increasing the frequency or upgrading to a tram line if your buses are always full