The station that is 5 min near me is like a 30 minute subway ride (plus 0-20 minute wait) to Union Station in DC. Then I'd have to switch to Acela (with some wait time probably 30 minutes for a safety buffer).

And my house is too expensive because I'm only 5 minute from the subway. The vast majority of people have to live further.

If I was going to downtown Philly, might be worth it. But if I wasn't, then driving would absolutely be a lot fast. Since I'd have to navigate the last miles there adding more time.

The ability to just leave whenever I want without having to connect a bunch of train rides is pretty valuable even if it took longer.

EDIT: and to make it clear, I'm not a suburanite who is allergic to public transport. Until a year ago, I lived in the city and didn't have a personal car. And even now, I'd take Acela to NYC rather than fly or drive. It just doesn't make sense for other stops on the way like Philly, Wilmington, Baltimore. And Boston would take too long on Acela, and I'd fly instead.