Yeah, I commute through Somerville and Cambridge, and while I'm the first to say that Boston drivers are some of the worst in the world (and I've driven/ridden in many countries), they have a nasty combination of aggression and incompetence but at least they are used to bikes and mostly treat them as legitimate road users. Also, Somerville, Cambridge and Boston have recently got significantly behind bike traffic. They've painted a load more bike lanes. I am in favor, even though they're 2/3 in the door zone, I can ride near the left line and be pretty safe, and the cars now show more respect for my right to be there.

People here are so used to the road laws being ignored, and mostly don't even know what the rules are, that they often relinquish their right of way for bikes when they don't have to. e.g. I have had cars wait for me and wave me through at a all-way stop. This is actually infuriating (I wish people would just follow the rules), but it's better than not having any rights recognized.