Public transit works perfectly fine in a low-density situation. Your urban planning needs to accommodate it, though, with walkability being a prime concern.
What do you mean by “low density”?
Density is a spectrum. There’s low density as in bikable Dutch suburbs, and low density as in US rural farms.
Public transit doesn’t work for US rural farms, but does for bikable Dutch suburbs. Pedestrian-unfriendly infrastructure is bad for public transit for to the last mile problem, sure. But even with Pedestrian friendly design, making very low densities work with public transit is difficult.
That’s because public transit relies on economies of agglomeration. With lower and lower density, fewer and fewer things are within a walkable or bikable distance to the public transit stop.
Many US suburbs have bad public transit partially from pedestrian unfriendly design, and partially from the walksheds of public transit having very little in them.
What do you mean by “low density”?
Density is a spectrum. There’s low density as in bikable Dutch suburbs, and low density as in US rural farms.
Public transit doesn’t work for US rural farms, but does for bikable Dutch suburbs. Pedestrian-unfriendly infrastructure is bad for public transit for to the last mile problem, sure. But even with Pedestrian friendly design, making very low densities work with public transit is difficult.
That’s because public transit relies on economies of agglomeration. With lower and lower density, fewer and fewer things are within a walkable or bikable distance to the public transit stop.
Many US suburbs have bad public transit partially from pedestrian unfriendly design, and partially from the walksheds of public transit having very little in them.