One of the biggest problems with riding in the city, is that it’s a motorist’s world. We have very few bike lanes, and a very comprehensive list of bike laws and associated fines:
There are plenty of blogs out there that speak of how cycling is a fashion statement and advocate cycling as a natural mode of transportation that comes as natural as walking etc. (It’s interesting to see their perspective of us). Perhaps it’s just a euro centric view of city planning and how to move people within those cities, but in Toronto (and I would imagine North America in general) it’s quite difficult for bikes to operate in any sustainable way.
But, as a Toronto cyclist, I have to ensure my safety while riding in the city to and from work by ensuring that I’m driving both defensively, and offensively as many motorists will cut you off instead of wasting a few minutes on their commute by giving a cyclist a bit of space.
Maybe I’m just feeling envy of a bike friendly city — but I think that I would feel quite the culture shock if I were to get on my bike and ride through Copenhagen or Amsterdam tomorrow 
P.S. Even the bike cops don’t wear helmets!
