I have noticed that I meet more and more people who say they don't drive, though I've wondered if that was merely an effect of meeting people in large cities. The concept of the self-driven car is appealing, especially if it could work as a kind of modular public transit, but I've got a feeling that such cars are a bit further off than the articles suggest.
I don't think it's the "driving" aspect so much as the "$20,000 and $400/mo in insurance just to be allowed to legally put the keys in" aspect. That and it's so much less of a tribulation to be stuck at home. Backintheday we found new bands by reading about them in magazines, then driving an hour to the music store to make a deposit, then driving back two weeks later to pick up our CD. Youtube is a definite improvement.
The laws are not so strict where I'm from, but I take your point. I love Youtube, but it bums me out that there are so many things that get in the way of frequent social interaction between people here. Plus, I always enjoyed going to the record store and just digging for whatever. I guess I don't have to deal with "holier-than-thou" record store employees anymore, just those bonkers comments sections.