the average size of the the engine in a European car was something like 1.6 or 1.8L, while the average American car was 3.5L
Yes, it seems people don't believe a 4-cylinder engine under 2 litres will even be able to move itself off the driveway ... it has to be a 5.7litre V8 even to get to the end of the street ...
Hate to break it to ya mate. Alberta is the northern extenion of what we call the wide open spaces down in the lower 48. Calgary is a big city no doubt... but they were still tying horses to rails at the sidewalk not to long ago. I guess you are learning that Canada is a lot more like America than you may have expected. Cattle ranching and being the basecamp for the rest of the Province isnt the kind of thing that fosters a lot of mass transit ...especially years ago when I would have been cheap to do.
Yes, Alberta is the Texas of Canada in more ways than one (but without the texans ...)
Calgary has gone through some growing pains partly due to the very low-density housing which creates travel problems but things should improve with new LRT lines and a ring-road (they have got agreement with the tsu-tsina reserve to build it I think).
It's amazing how 30 minutes out of town you are in real small-town places (that probably do only have a single horse) with saloon / roadhouses and lots of people in cowboy hats.
That reminds me, I need to go buy a hat, boots, jeans and buckle-as-big-as-a-dinner-plate ready for the Stampede! Yee-haw ....
Saw one that looked like.... well I think a bicycle would have as much room.