It's not just the drivers causing problems with regards to cyclists. A lot of bicyclists are total assholes who have no respect for any rules of the road. They ride on the road or sidewalk when it suits them. They weave in and out of bike lanes on roads where there are dedicated bike lanes. They ride in between cars in heavy traffic making it difficult for people to react to them. Some of them totally disregard traffic signals and stop signs when they're riding on the street. I'm not just talking about my experiences as a driver. As a pedestrian, I've almost been hit by idiots on bicycles over a dozen times when I was crossing a street and had the right of way. I almost got into a fight with some Abe Lincoln-looking, hipster asshole who ran over my foot when I was crossing a street right after the signal came on. Motherfucker had the nerve to tell me to pay attention to where I was walking. I was originally on the bicyclists side when they started expanding bike lanes where I live, but I've seen too many bicyclists acting like douchebags on the street to have much sympathy for them.
Very good points, it certainly goes both ways, as always a few bad apples can spoil it for everyone on both sides. Very interesting full report on Real Sports, they traveled over to Copenhagen and Amsterdam where the majority (50-60%) of citizens use bikes rather than drive in their daily lives, and the benefits (savings of an estimated $250 billion in healthcare costs) and negatives (major bicycle parking problems, and the need for more bike "garages") and the movement to spread more bicycle riding here in the U.S (Minneapolis is the first U.S. city to make it to the top 20 bicycle riding cities worldwide list with 6% of their citizens riding bikes.
Bicyclists do kill pedestrians, evident by this New Yorker article. I remembered the Tarlov case because she was the wife of a famous producer(?).. http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/bicycle-crash-kills-another-pedestrian-central-park Having said that, l agree that the economical, environmental and health benefits FAR outweigh those of cars. Love my bike when l do ride it.
