Should you be afraid to ride your bike in the city?

A reader left a comment under my Twitter post:

which in general I agree with. Almost. Those last words made me think about it more. Is fear really a good thing in U.S. cities considering we have very little proper cycling infrastructure? Sure, some fear is good. It stops us from doing some really stupid things. But should you be afraid to ride your bike in the city?

 

When it comes to riding a bicycle in the city, there are three pieces of the puzzle:

1. First, cycling in the city should not require any special gear such as helmets, reflective vests, gloves, padded shorts, etc. A "gearless" cycling is simply more accessible.
2. Second, a proper infrastructure is desirable as it increases safety and makes city biking more pleasant and efficient. Protected cycle paths are a good example, but other solutions come to mind as well.
3. Third, and perhaps often omitted, part is driver's education and liability. In fact, I dare to say this is the most important one. Let me ask: would you rather bike in a city with very good infrastructure but 99% of drivers being hostile, even aggressive towards cyclists, or in a city with no infrastructure at all but 99% of drivers being very aware of bike riders, always slowing down next to them and giving them plenty of space when passing by? You may say, there is always that 1% so it's better to be fully separated, but even those protected cycle paths must cross with car traffic at some point.

So when I see a comment like the one above, I feel that something is missing there. Rewriting it as "With current infrastructure and hostile drivers, fear is good." makes it now sound much more complete.