Dismounting a mine cart now places you diagonally 3 blocks away, including where there is no block to stand on. This is true of virtually my entire rail system, which tends to be very high up.
I got used to building rail so that I no longer dismounted the other side of a window and burned to death in lava.
Reproduce: lay a bridge 2 blocks wide. Run rail over it. Place a mine cart on the rail. Get in mine cart. Dismount. Wake up in a bed.
Can confirm, exiting a minecart put me about 3 blocks away diagonally.