I lived in Japan for a year, a country stuffed to brimming with people, buildings, and rice fields. It also has a fantastic rail and bus system, and I could make it from my tiny rural town to Osaka in just about four hours without owning a car. A grocery store with sour cream was only a 20 minute/5 minute train, 10 minute walk away.

Yet biking there was hell. The only people I ever saw routinely using the train/bus were the elderly or students. Every single one of my Japanese teachers drove to school, despite idle weather and distance for biking. Why? For the same reason Americans don't ride their bikes to work: roads not made for bikes or pedestrians, lack of showers and changing facilities, and having to set aside an entire hour of time in a jam-packed day. When you barely have time to squeeze lunch into your schedule, choosing an hour-long commute (half an hour in the morning, half an hour in the evening) over the twenty minute drive seems ridiculous.

Additionally, I'd add two more problems that aren't usually addressed:

1) Most people will own cars ANYWAY for long distances that are impossible to bike to, like visiting relatives or needing to do business an hour away. If you're already spending all this money on a vehicle-it's really tempting to use it often and get your money's worth.

2) Most people have children. Road trips are enough of a headache even in a car; if you need to drop the kids off at school, or take them to a dentist appointment right after work, or pick them up from school because they're ill... how will bikes address those problems?

1) The article was about bicycle parking, not that car owners drive more to get their money's worth. How many people would consider alternatives to driving for many trips if there was better and more bicycle parking?

2) Do people in Japan now drive their kids to school every day? My wife grew up in Japan in she can't remember any parents driving their kids to school. But times change. Anyway, your point here seems to be that people need their cars for their kids' illnesses, dentist appointments, etc. I don't think the article is suggesting that bicycles are appropriate for these sorts of trips. Rather, having better bicycle parking may encourage less driving.