>>1723180That's usually the reasoning. I've gone out of my way to stop & chat with people who are riding against traffic, if I'm just out, riding around.
It's almost always low-income people. Guys working in kitchens, bottom-rung retail jobs, that sort of stuff. Usually they have a genuine interest in staying safe/not getting killed, but they haven't had any instruction. The most common fear is getting 'rear ended'. Instead of thinking "make myself more visible", the reaction is "if I'm looking at the traffic, I might be able to make a move, possibly avoid disaster". I don't entirely understand it.
I still don't know how I feel about it, but my local coop gives out lights to people who ask for them. The rear one is serviceable, the front is pretty bad. A white blinky, where you can't see anything, so you're hoping other people see you. I know it's partly through a local bike shop, partly through some grant from the city. We also have hi-vis/construction worker vests to give out, but they're distinctly unpopular.
>>1727465In the US highways & bicycles aren't mutually exclusive.
Check out this signed bike route from another thread
>>1723286 
