This was interesting. I've hitchhiked several times, almost never alone though, though I know women who do, and sometimes you can wait for a long ass time but I've always been picked up eventually. Definitely it's easier as a woman, but I usually hitchhike with a male friend and we've always gotten rides. I've always thought of it less about safety and more about the person thinking "Hm, do I want to hang out with a stranger right now?" We have a lot fewer opportunities to talk to strangers in person now than we used to, everything is so automated or confined to existing social circles, so I see it more as about like... our rising social awkwardness than about fear. I haven't tried hitchhiking since Covid, which I'd imagine would make a lot of people more cautious about letting strangers into their personal space, so I'd guess it's gotten harder. Which is a shame, hitchhiking is one of the only really free forms of transportation we have, and you can end up on some amazing adventures with it.