I've been thinking about the main question: Are there essentially two categories of rules of the road, one for vehicles, and one for pedestrians? If so, I think there would need to be a clear methodology for distinguishing the two groups.
It can't be wheels, since in many states, like california, roller bladers, and skateboarders are considered pedestrians. And horse riders are lumped in with what some would call the "vehicle" half of the vehicle code.
It's not really speed, since roller bladers can reach speeds similar to cyclists.
And right of way for pedestrians in courts would probably boil down to size and speed relativity issues, and not vehicle vs pedestrian issues. (i.e. a jogger would likely be required to yield to a slower pedestrian, a roller blader more so, a cyclist, more so, etc).
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Also, think of all the requirements for motor vehicles that attain higher speeds. Safety tests, emission req's, registration, licensing, insurance, etc. They certainly are held to higher responsibilities as far as following stop lights, speeding, etc, then cyclists in many areas.
Then you have the categorie of low powered vehicles. Golf-cart type vehicles, electric scooters, mopeds, segways, etc. If they (as is usually true) have a top speed of about 25, they are only allowed on streets with that speed limit. (one exception is that scooters etc, can travel on faster roads only if there is a bike lane and they use it). They, unlike other vehicles, are allowed to use the bike lane, or the sidewalk.
Then you have bicycles, which likely due in a large part to the legitimacy of it's long history, seems to get the best of both worlds. They are only restricted from certain freeways, and have more access to the roads then almost all other low-powered vehicles. They are completely free of the licensing, registration, insurance requirements. They can often ride on sidewalks (and yield ROW to peds, of course). They can often treat stop signs as yield signs, they can filter in traffic.
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In short, I don't think it is any more legitimate to classify the vehicle code into the categories of vehicles and pedestrians then it is to break it into another system of categories (like fast vehicles, slow vehicles, slow agile vehicles, and pedestrians.
So frankly, while I see gaining driver acceptance as a big goal (and am not going to argue at the best way to accomplish this), I do not at all see how the vehicle/pedestrian dichotomy helps at all. I think drivers resist it, because it is so easy to "misunderstand" the intent. And I think most drivers see cyclist as something in between a pedestrian and a motor vehicle: something narrow, small, easy to miss, sometimes unpredictable, sometimes fast, often slow - and possibly (to some drivers) something in the way, and not a legitimate road user.
I don't think that forcing the idea of the bicycle as a vehicle is the best way to accomplish
chaging the idea of them not being as legitimate as cars. The cars who treat cyclists as in the way, likely already possess a mindset that will not be changed by forcing them to believe cyclists are vehicles. I personally think the best way is to safely act as something in between, and then pass the suckers in gridlock and don't let them catch up. Then maybe they will start to realize that you are not in their way, but that cars are in your way.....