Originally Posted by
howsteepisit
So how does being in the lane protect you from a driver who is looking at their phone rather than the road and whats in front of them?
I think the model is that distracted motorists do look up just enough to see if there is anything in front of them that they need to respond to. A bike gutter-hugging is less likely to make the grade than one that is right smack in the middle of the lane. In that three-tenths of a second a facebooker is looking up, they may never even look anyplace but the center of the lane.
Of course, there are countless counter-examples where people drive into school buses, big rigs and even buildings. As you say, fortunately these events are quite rare (still not rare enough, but I'll live with risks that are rarer than being struck by lightning).