[pbhjpbhj]

FWIW "addicted to cars" has results with headline in major news outlets - it's a common trope.

In human geography terms it simply means that giving up cars is a supremely difficult thing for society to do - particularly in some Western areas that are designed around the idea that all people have cars available [cheaply].

This has enough similarity to addiction that people use "addicted" commonly like this - "I'm addicted to coffee" or "I'm addicted to chocolate" usually just means you'd find it hard to give it up. [I don't know if clinically those statements are true for some though.]

As it happens I've given up alcohol, chocolate, coffee, videogames, and cars at various points and the car was definitely the hardest requiring the most change in my lifestyle.

[tptacek]

Coffee addiction and heroin addiction are, all rhetorical games aside, not actually comparable.

[wglb]

Would you say that you are addicted to shoes? I would find it harder to give up shoes as compared to cars.

Disagree with your definition of addicted

[pbhjpbhj]

I've gone barefoot a few times - it's a bit sore on gravelly ground but other than that not terrible. Supermarket chiller sections feel very cold.

>Disagree with your definition of addicted //

I made pains to show that "addicted" was being used metaphorically. I was describing common use not presenting an alternate definition. That said the roots of the word are in having an inclination towards something and it is still defined in some dictionaries as alternately relating towards habits rather than solely pertaining to psychological or physiological dependency.