It's just the aging process. I think the thing you miss the most is meeting friends. That gets to be difficult. People say they'll come and get you, but if you're too independent, you can't accept that. Getting by in the suburbs without a car is not easy.
Public transit can be inconvenient and time-consuming.
In scattered places, elderly people are fortunate to have access to community buses such as the Rambler, funded by the state, Montgomery County, Upper Merion Township, and Bridgeport Borough. The Rambler served 12,045 passengers last year, mostly senior citizens who ride for free. The Rambler will even depart from its normal route to pick up seniors too frail to walk to a stop. But using it is a lot more complicated than driving - even for people such as Helen Howard, 80. She is accustomed to public transportation because, like many women of her generation, she never drove.