Originally Posted by
FBinNY
And yet, where are all these accidents? The overall accident rate is not rising dramatically. And more to the point that the OP is dealing with, it certainly isn't rising dramatically enough for bicyclists to abandon the right side of the road and play dodge-em on the left.
However, if you believe I'm wrong on that point, feel free to ride against traffic or on the sidewalk, or abandon the roads entirely. For my part, while I agree about the risks of driving while texting, I'll continue to take my chances on the right. In short, there may be a storm, but the sky isn't falling.
Where are all these accidents? In actual fact, the accident rate due to drunk driving has dropped precipitously, largely due to the activism of MADD, and the fact that it has now become much less socially acceptable to do so. Cell phone distraction has taken up the slack and more. It needs to become socially unacceptable to use one's cell phone while driving - but the telecomm industry is making too much money to let that ever happen.
I certainly don't believe that riding against traffic is the solution. And as for mainly abandoning riding on the roads - unfortunately, Multi-use bike paths have their own set of hazards - mainly blind turns, and pedestrians and other cyclists who are oblivious to the need to stay on their side of the path around those blind turns.