Why does NO ONE walk in downtown SD?

I just moved to downtown SD (Gaslamp area) from the Bay Area (lived in SF and DTSJ) and am quite shocked at how dead the streets are.

Aside from 4th/5th/6th street, I’ve been on streets that are absolutely empty of pedestrians, other than the unhoused folks. I’ve walked around EV, Columbia/Cortez, and Gaslamp and I’ve only ever seen people walking the streets in the Gaslamp quarter. What shocked me the most was walking to Rikka Fika and Asa Bakery and seeing streets completely empty - then entering busy and thriving businesses full of people!!

Coming from the Bay Area, this has been quite a culture shock… is it the area I live in or is downtown just more of a driving culture?