Originally Posted by
Leisesturm
I'll bet you haven't done this yourself. Recumbent tandems and velomobiles are the only recumbents that get this protection. The rest, the VAST majority (of the minority) of recumbents are considered very hard to see by drivers. Whether or not this is actually true, is of course open to debate, but drivers perceptions trump any objective scientific observations. It at least one account I have heard of, a judge refused to cite a motorist for killing the rider of a recumbent, because in his legal opinion no one should be out riding such contraptions in public. So that's what you're up against. Thought you (and others) should know.
On the contrary, I did indeed make the switch, and I did so
mainly for purposes of safety. My primary commuting bike is now a two wheel recumbent - not a tandem or velomobile. I am far more seen than I ever was on my upright bike. I am given a lot more respect on the road than I ever was before. Close passes are a tenth of what they were before, and this without even using a safety flag.
I proved to myself that all vehicles on the road, small or large, are in fact seen but unfortunately taken for granted. A recumbent makes you stop and take notice, and with that comes the perk of a little bit of extra space. If at all recumbents become ubiquitous then I suspect that perk would vanish.