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It's too dangerous nowadays. It is really bad out there. In my opinion it is very dangerous for both pedestrians and bicycle riders and i believe there are a lot of people out there who would kill you just for the "fun" of it if they thought they could get away with it. Because of the manner in which law enforcement view accidents between vehicles and bicycles it is probably fairly accurate to say it is open season on bicycle riders in the US nowadays.
I think most roadways in the US are too dangerous to ride a bicycle. I would not want to encourage people to ride their bicycles without pointing out this fact. However, in spite of this dangerous environment i still ride my bikes. I am always trying to think about the safest route. People making a right hand turn (right "turners") are carefully watched. There are sections of road i will not ride on. I try to maintain a "Cushion of Safety" at all times between myself and the vehicles on the road. Don't assume the driver of some vehicle is going to look out for you. Many times i ride on the sidewalk. But i always stop and check traffic before crossing an intersection. Actually, i "pick my way along" while riding on the sidewalk and give space to pedestrians. There are probably riders who do not agree with riding on the sidewalk - They feel you should "Assert your right-of-way" on the right side of the road. In my opinion it is not worth it. It will not change the system just increase your chances of getting killed or hurt. I viewed some statistics awhile back which showed walking to be a little or maybe a lot more dangerous than bicycle riding. A lot of pedestrians get killed by cars. I currently do not own a car or truck. I have to either walk or ride my bicycle or use public transportation. I try to use the utmost caution and commonsense when riding my bicycle. I try and use the truckers "Smith System" principles when riding my bike. Someone should develop a smith system for bicycle riders. I think a lot of the principles taught in the smith system could be applied to bicycle riding.
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