We've had this discussion before, but it seems particularly germane, so...
I will not bicycle the last 100 yards to the gate to my workplace; it
would be suicidal. I have discussed this with others. One woman who
comes from the same direction as I do was seriously considering
parking her car a half mile from the campus, then habitually biking to
her parking place, and driving the last half mile.
Yes, there is pavement. It is risky enough in a car, though.
Two lanes each way, plus a center left-turn "chicken" lane which must
be entered at speed, and sometimes must cope with a competing user
coming the other way, plus driveways off to the right on both sides.
Lots of lane changes at high speeds. No shoulder, no sidewalk. The
grassy areas on both sides could easily contain a bike lane but I am
told they are owned by the Texas Department of Transportation, for
whom the influence of non-motorized traffic is nil.
There are various other spots on my commute that are almost as bad.
The idea that bicycles could calm this sort of traffic is unrealistic.
Texas is large and Texas vehicles are large. As a consequence of large
vehicles traveling long distances on straight roads with narrow safety
margins, there is a lot of momentum involved here. Taking up a traffic
lane on a road like this with a bicycle at bicycle speeds is not safe.
mt
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