actually, i commute along chicago's lakefront path everyday and because so much of it runs adjacent to lake shore drive (an expressway), i find that a blinkie helps me distinguish a bicycle up ahead better because it stands out from all the other visual headlight "noise" of the cars on LSD.

what really annoys me about lights on the lakefront path are the yahoos using their 8 billion candlepower search lights on a trail that is already illuminated with over head lights.