This is a pretty good if surprisingly long discussion of issues relating to the tension between cars, bikes, and pedestrians. Better bike lanes where appropriate are a good thing. Cyclists should behave better, but the real question is whether they should have to follow precisely the same laws as cars. Specifically, is it a good idea to allow cyclists to treat stop signs as yield signs? As the writer points out, people get pissed off when they see cyclists blow through stops, but they get even more pissed when the cyclists slow them down. I just don't have a good sense of what that would do to safety. I see some cyclists doing it in what appears to be a safe manner, and some who are pretty reckless.
Cyclists should be able to expect to not be doored and be reasonably sure that drivers are aware of them when they're behaving as expected, but drivers don't have 100% 360 degree awareness at all times, and once cyclists start salmoning or going on and off the sidewalks, it's unreasonable to expect that drivers can always be appropriately aware.
