It never did and it never will. To change the gloomy state of affairs that has been described will require revolutionary change. Such change does not occur without standard bearers to demonstrate massive support. Only by large numbers of ordinary citizens speaking out strongly against the rapacious blight spread by the unopposed dictatorship of the automobile will matters be improved. And the easiest group of people to motivate to bear this standard should be cyclists.
Cyclists know firsthand how much their mobility and safety is impeded by automobiles.
They also know how effective bicycling can be as transportation. They almost all share a constellation of common concerns and problems. People in cities all over the world face similar problems. In many countries, people are alarmed by the menace of automotive hegemony. Across the world, the Powers That Be have decided that the Reign of the Almighty Automobile is upon us, much to the misfortune of rickshaw drivers in Bombay, asthmatic children in Mexico City, ancient monuments in Athens and Rome, and cyclists everywhere.