I know we've talked about this before (probably in this thread.. lol), but anyway...
Originally Posted by
mechBgon
You're forgetting the very common scenario where the cyclist is in the intersection waiting to turn across the oncoming lanes when traffic clears. Meanwhile, there are motorists stopped on both sides of the intersection, facing eachothers' headlights, with a cyclist inbetween. In this situation, both reflective gear and active side lighting are beneficial.
If the cyclist is waiting for traffic to clear, then when they finally cross, it's clear -- they're not in danger and aren't going to get hit.
And, I don't know about the rest of you, but when I'm in my car and facing headlights across the intersection, and either the street isn't wider than a couple lanes or I'm near the center, and unless there's a lot of street lighting, I can't see
anything at ground level besides the other cars' headlights. The glare is just too strong.
If I'm in a car waiting at an intersection, I'm... well, I'm waiting. I'm not going anywhere. I'm not going to hit anything. A cyclist going across in front of me, whether I can see him or not, is a non-issue.