Originally Posted by
formicaman
So I've been commuting for 10 years and never had so much as a close call, but last Friday some drunk driver with a previous DUI from the PREVIOUS EVENING killed a father of 11 cycling on the same street I will be commuting on if I get a new job. At 6 in the evening! Now, the cyclist probably had no lights and maybe he wasn't in the bike lane, but it's hard not to think that it could have been me.
Which route would you prefer? My line of thinking is probably the same as yours. Stick to the 4 lane w/bike lane. Ride prepared for/expecting the worst. Keep your head on a swivel and be thinking several moves ahead of you.
One of the bike routes I sometimes use where I live has been home to a couple of assaults/robberies and a murder (victim was cycling home from work too). It hasn't stopped people from using the route, because it's the ONLY route across the river barring using the sidewalk on the other side of the bridge.