Commuters are neither stupid nor stubborn.
Provide people with a transit system that meets most of their needs, as well as enabling them to get to and from their destination in less time than they can drive, and they will use that system. The greater the time saving, the greater the patronage. Imagine San Diego with an integrated transit system that enabled you to ride from Oceanside or Carlsbad to downtown San Diego in 15 minutes, rain or shine, at any time of the day or night. If you commute to and from Temecula, it would take you 15 minutes to get to Escondido and about 20 minutes more to catch a plane at Lindberg Field, whether it was 8 AM on a wet Monday or 6am on Sunday. The system would provide you with the capability to get from Descanso to the University Town Center in 30 minutes.