Originally Posted by
HillRider
As noted, higher end bikes are usually sold to riders who have an existing pedal and shoe system and will transfer them to the new bike or buy a duplicate of what they already ride. There are several competing and incompatible pedal systems so the bike maker can't know what the customer uses and, therefore, sells the bike with no pedals at all.
I believe there are also US federal regulations that say "entire bikes" must have things like reflectors, etc, that aren't generally on road bikes. If a bike comes without pedals, it is not considered an "entire bike."
Cheers,
Charles