Originally Posted by
UniChris
In a way what they've done is demonstrate the fundamental problem.
When even some cyclists looking at this picture could conclude that the side-by-side bikes are taking up an unreasonable amount of the road width, it's no surprise that much of the non-cycling, driving public would.
It takes some degree of actual road-cycling smarts and experience to recognize that this is the minimum, possibly safe, way to ride that road.
The challenge we face is changing that recognition from one requiring insight and a second look, to a general public awareness.
The sign I want to see is "bicyclists shall use full lane" - not "may" but "shall" Technically sharrows mean that, but they're poorly understood. And the infamous "share the road" signs lead to more misunderstanding than understanding.
OP has demonstrated a whole bunch of attitudinal problems in addition to that, but here's just two. One is the assumption that motor vehicle drivers should have the privilege of speed uninhibited by anything other than other motor vehicles. The second is an assumption that the driver's reasons for driving on a crowded road are somehow more legitimate than those of a cyclist.