Cable cars, elevated steam trains, electric trolleys, and commuter trains eased the ability of people to live outside of major urban areas yet still work there.

The statement is true, but applies for small countries were things are not far apart like England, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany.

In the United States, before the massification of cars, most people who worked in the city still lived in the cities because distances are much higher.

Only with the advent of cars and the construction of large highways within the cities, and between the cities, suburbanization was possible.

the completion of the erie canal spurred the first great westward movement of american settlers, gave access to the rich land and resources west of the appalachians and made new york the preeminent commercial city in the united states.