It sounds like you're saying they're livng in an effective dictatorship rather than a democracy.
They should be able to choose by the way they vote.
I dont reallly know much about how planning and public services works in the USA.
Im my country we have fluctuating quality of local and national public transport investment and maintenace, and one of the sources of variation is who they're voting in to power.
When they keep voting in individualistic self-serving leaders the public infrastructure gets shat on sometimes duismantled and snaked off outside of public control. The rare time they vote for politicians who support public infrastructure and the general public, then it improves,
however briefly.
So my country is probably average on public transport - by the sounds of things, it's generally better than most of the USA - I'd rather it be better. but I tend to accept the choices made by the electorate, saddening though it may be, this is what people want.
If i'm really that bothered about it then i have to stand for election myself.
I guess it might all come down to how free and fair the elections are and how easy it is to enter and get your manifesto heard by a fair number of people.