some more reasons from a UK perspective: - if you want to turn across the road, you have to merge onto the road which can be dangerous and awkward, so it's bet

some more reasons from a UK perspective: - if you want to turn across the road, you have to merge onto the road which can be dangerous and awkward, so it's better to be on the road for longer before you want to turn than you might expect. - cycle lanes are often too narrow (if just painted onto an existing road), so push you closer to the curb than is really safe. i often feel like the best position would be on the edge of the cycle lane, but then cars will not overtake properly - ungraded cycle lanes tend to fill up with the dirt and detritus that's flung off the road by vehicles if they're not cleaned regularly enough (this is especially a problem if there are bollards or other street furniture that is supposed to separate the bike lane from the road, as it makes them harder to clean) - cars are more likely to cut you off when turning across a cycle lane, than if they are forced to overtake properly most cyclists I've talked to here think the kind of cycle lanes we have are worse than useless