The idea of a university has survived since medieval times. The surrounding world has changed significantly, but the model still works. The idea that old==bad is largely a marketing one.
Information is not free. Those universities have large, well-stocked libraries, and professors to point you to the right section. Those books are expensive, especially when you're not even sure which ones you need yet. There is a ton of information online, some of it even accurate. But you need to know quite a lot to be able to judge whether you are reading something correct, deliberately misleading, or just plain wrong. For the details, most of us still use books.
A society where one needs a college degree to achieve financial security is clearly broken. We all place too much emphasis on degrees. Academic degrees are very good for a very small proportion of jobs. If we can get over the idea that academic qualifications somehow make a person superior, the world will be a better place. To quote an old example, when your kitchen is flooding, you don't need an expert in fluid mechanics - a plumber will be much more welcome. Why is this important? Because when we send less people to university, we as a society can cover more of the cost. This is only unfair if you think everybody needs a degree. At the same time, a decent apprentice scheme is also very beneficial to society (see Germany for a good example).