I think it's possible that bike lane striping (via an increase in total combined pavement width of right travel lane and bike lane) might provide some improvement in safety on long high speed roads, but certainly won't eliminate fatal crashes caused by motorists drifting to the right. Drivers who aren't looking through their windshields or who aren't in control of their vehicles won't be affected by stripes any more than they are by the view of a bicyclist ahead. But there may be subtle effects that we haven't been able to tease out of the limited evidence available on the subject.

However, that issue is unrelated to the urban street situation to which I was referring.

I believe many women cyclists are largely motivated by social factors when they express preference for striped bike lanes and ride them into dangerous situations. I suspect that they are attracted to the idea of a social contract where they ride well outside of the path of overtaking traffic in exchange for drivers recognizing their legitimacy in the bike lane and being careful around them. The problem is that for motorists to keep up their end of that hypothetical social contract requires more care than motorists can or will execute with any reliability. By comparison, assertive male cyclists may thumb their noses at the social contract and ride in line with traffic, understanding that they are actually less likely to get injured this way, and in many cases are willing to accept the false labels of "aggressive," "daredevil", "arrogant" or "militant" that go with violating a social taboo.

Personally, I place great value on social contracts; it's one of the reasons I try hard to make a complete stop at stop signs, wait for a red light to turn green, and avoid passing on the right. The social contract of riding in a badly designed bike lane, or riding far to the right in general when it is relatively unsafe to do so, is one of the very few social contracts related to traffic that I will violate regularly. The public's expectation is based on flawed assumptions, misinformation, and prejudice. The consequence of this violation is public harassment, but I have a thick skin when it comes to sticking up for the travel rights of cyclists.