You keep mentioning that many car drivers are inattentive and do stupid stuff and don't obey the laws. Yes, that is true. So what? That is not what this thread is about. You asked why drivers have problems with bicyclists. That is what we are all talking about.
If you are defending the bad behavior of many bikers by saying that many drivers are worse, you are certainly not elevating the cause of bicyclists.
Whether drivers are good or bad doesn't change the fact that motor vehicles and bicycles are not a good mix.
Studies of highway traffic have shown that when vehicles are traveling at close to the same speed, accident numbers are reduced. The same studies show that when vehicle speeds vary by more than 20 mph on the same road, regardless of vehicle type, accident rates go up. That certainly includes bicycles using the same road.
You mentioned that being delayed momentarily by a bicycle is no different than being delayed by a mail truck, etc. I beg to differ. Mail trucks, garbage trucks, and school buses are providing an essential service to all in the community. Bicyclists using the road for fun and fitness are not in the same category.
The person that said that drivers are not in any physical danger from bicyclists only gets half a point for their argument. Ask any driver that has caused a death if it has had a major effect on their life. Twenty years ago my niece killed a pedestrian with her car. It haunts her to this day, despite the fact that she wasn't found at fault and the pedestrian was on drugs and stepped out right into her path, possibly on purpose.
Common sense on the part of drivers and bicyclists would eliminate most problems. In that statement I include most bicycles staying out of most traffic lanes most of the time. In my mind that is common sense. Unfortunately common sense is hard to legislate, and we don't want more laws and restrictions.
Nifty-250
"If you don't know where you're going, you may wind up somewhere else". Yogi Berra
