Agreed. My statement ("at the expense of") assumes this not to be the case with respect to cars vs mass transit, at least if use of the former undermines development of the latter. I'm sure the ideal global solution is some hybrid, but I'm pretty sure the dynamics of individuals making locally optimal decisions results at best in a hybrid solution sub-optimally skewed toward cars. And that's only considering the economy and the environment. It best worse if you consider society and consider it a cost if it increases social stratification of the haves and have nots.