A significant number of drivers out there are not used to driving around cyclists, and that creates problems that are based on drivers not being used to looking out for (and being aware of) cyclists' needs. Our numbers need to increase.

Encourage everyone you know to cycle ON THE ROAD, and give them some primers on safety, etc. Start with your mayor. When our numbers get large enough, the politicians will pay attention and you'll notice a bit more seriousness on their part to fight for our safety (and votes). We, of course, should not just rest on the issue - we should also lobby the police, the mayors and everyone else, so that at-fault drivers don't get off lightly. With more numbers, we can justify the creation of bike friendly routes in cities (roads that are invonvenient for drivers - curves, bumps, separate and earlier traffic lights and lanes for bikes, etc). It's just the way it is. Without clout, we'll always be cycling out of our skin to stay alive, and drivers will always be dismissing us as an anomaly on the road (more driver training, would, of course help - but it's generally what one sees on the road everyday that sticks in the mind and calls for attention).

The wonder is, it's so quick and good for the health to get around on bikes, yet few people "dare" to. If we get powerful enough, drivers will watch for us as well as they watch for pedestrians at crosswalks in big cities - knowing that to hit us would be to put a significant amount (or almost all) of their work time for the rest of their living hell towards the compensation payments for our deaths. It's really insane, for example, that a driver actually runs into a cyclist from behind.