People who have never been to L.A. really have no idea how insanely huge it is. Driving to my apartment from the start of city (before you even get to L.A. county) and having the city just keep going and going and going for two hours and not because of traffic jams is something you have to experience to truly understand.
i mean this is how most public transport is in any vaguely populous area in europe, only for rural lines is it standard to actually have to look at the schedule.