Alligator
I was commuting in Colorado Springs for 28 years until recently. In the last 15 years most (if not all) of the under-the pavement induction coils that would let the traffic control system know a car was waiting were switched to optical systems, which meant just riding up to the crosswalk would trigger them...and at some intersections they were so good and quick they would usually give me the green before I had to stop or even slow much. Of course at some intersections nothing seems to work, not even the "beg button".
Also over the last 20 years not only have the MUPS and bike lanes been upgraded and expanded, but there seem to be continuing upgrades and maintenance even when the trails seem fine. I arrived here in 1992 just as the original bike lanes and signs from the bike boom of the '70s were fading from memory as well as literally fading from the streets and signs. Beginning in the early 2000s the bike infrastructure has become better than I could have dreamed.
Even before the bike lane and MUP explosion out here, most roads in town had generous shoulders. Visiting family in Chicagoland and New Jersey it is shocking to see how few roads have accommodations for anything but motor vehicles or even pedestrians.
As far as utility trucks on the MUPS, I've mellowed as I've aged and I rarely get hacked off anymore. Besides...the last three utility trucks I encountered on the MUPs this summer were there to cut the overhanging branches back and trim the weeds and growth 6 feet to sides of the pavement. Each time the crew leader apologized for blocking the path, and then I would thank everyone on the crew for helping make out paths some of the best anywhere.
I can't imagine the bike infrastructure in Colorado Springs getting much better. People's behavior on the MUPS is another thing: aggressive riders of the motorized and non-motorized variety, oblivious riders, pedestrians and pet owners, and transients suffering from mental illness and substance abuse with the detritus of their unfocused existences spilling out onto the MUPS.
But on the whole I imagine that I'm living the bike commuting dream here in Colorado Springs...except that I've been working from home for the last 10 months. I miss my commute, but am learning to enjoy the freedom to make my daily ride to anywhere I choose.