Just because we're used to something...

What distinguishes an environment designed for cars from an environment designed for humans? Generally speaking, when we’re out and about in the US, we humans are the guests and it’s the cars that are at home. Everything — everything — is designed and built with cars as the priority.

For example, when you come to a curb, what do you do? You leave your level and step down to the level of the cars. You cross their turf and step back up.
When you want to cross a street, you ask permission by pushing a button and cross only when the light says you may.
You cross the street only at intersections because of the cars whose turf you are invading. Back in the day, we even invented a new way of shaming people who cross where they’re not supposed to. To do this, we coined the derogatory new term “jaywalking”. The word “jay” was slang at the time and referred to country “bumpkins” who, presumably, were too ignorant to know where to cross.
At an intersection where right on red is the rule, drivers pay most attention to what’s coming toward them from the left. If you’re crossing the street on the car’s right-hand side where it’s intending to turn, your chances of getting hit are dramatically higher than if right on red is prohibited.
On many roads you’re simply not allowed to go unless you’re in a motorized vehicle. Without being inside a car or truck, you’re not even a guest on those roads — you’re an intruder.

Different homes with different owners

For many types of areas, it would be far better if cars were the guests and humans were the ones at home. City centers, residential neighborhoods, streets with shops, cafes and restaurants all benefit significantly from a human-centric design. Here’s what that looks like in practice:

The level of the pedestrian walkway and bike path remains constant, and it’s the cars that have to go up and over after they’ve been granted permission to cross human turf. This naturally slows the speed.
The presence of bike riders and pedestrians arriving at an intersection is automatically sensed and signals activate immediately to stop other vehicles so that non-motorized traffic has priority most of the time.
Signs are not relied on to control speed. Instead, in places where motorized vehicles are the guests, streets are narrow, textured, and complex to navigate so that speed is lessened organically.
Right on red does not exist in areas where cars are the guests.
And there are plenty of places where cars are not welcome to go at all.

These sound like radical ideas to all us fish who were born and raised in a car-centric environment, but they are all tried and true methods of public space design that have many benefits for people, for businesses, and for communities.