The article pretty much contradicts this - the cars don't drive themselves exceptionally well, unless you're constantly monitoring them. This is expected considering the actual capabilities of Tesla's 'FSD,' but it falls short of the promised performance.
I'm very happy with the performance. I use FSD everyday. It is very very good. I only intervene when I want to. In my last generation hardware, that runs on a 144 TOPS computer, it will very occasionally (twice in the last 4 months) do something like start moving a few seconds before a red light turns green. These critical interventions happened all the time a couple of years ago, but since the introduction of V12 software have been all but eliminated.
FSD is literally improving exponentially, looking at it in Europe (where it is blocked by regulators with economic incentives to delay Tesla's progress) is like looking at a fully fueled rocket ship at ignition and complaining that it is not moving.
Go take a ride in a new Model Y with hardware 4 and V13 software in North America and you'll realize how the EU regulators are screwing over European customers.
I commuted via bus/RER/metro from the suburbs through Paris to La Defense for many years and didn't have that experience. It's not Japan but outside of strikes it was reliable enough. Also, the 'less wealthy' folks usually can't afford nor want all the expenses associated with car ownership in France. It's much more affordable to get a Navigo pass.
The weather is nice year round, lots a hiking nearby, beach is 40 min drive and easier commute to work while still being able to visit the city at night or weekends when you want. Good public schools if you live in the right areas. My personal favorite is the lack of mosquitos. I've lived in the midwest, south, new england and in Europe and never even considered there could be a place with such pleasant weather and no mosquitos. It does get chilly in the evenings though.
Having spent quite a bit of time in the Santa Cruz mountains, Big Basin SP, Pescadero/Butano SP, and Portola Redwoods SP areas, the no mosquitoes thing is a bit optimistic.
Sure it's not as bad as say, northern Minnesota, but once you get away from the ocean and desert areas, if there's standing freshwater around there can be plenty of mosquitoes. The last time I camped in Big Basin everyone was running through clouds of them to/from the restrooms.
But yeah, in the cities like SF and LA, there aren't very many. The city would spray for mosquitoes at night when I lived in San Mateo, which surprised me coming from the midwest and not expecting Californians to be ok with such chemicals sprayed throughout their neighborhoods while they slept.
In my part of Marin County, they use a bacteria, Bacillus thuringiensis, to control the mosquitoes. There are enough mosquitoes so that you'll get bit if sit in one spot long enough, but I don't recall ever getting bit while walking.
