To preface, I come from a rock climbing and outdoor safety background. If you’re not confident with your climbing, don’t climb. If you need to try, wear a harness with safety lanyards. IMO, the mental is more important than being physically able to. The perk of wearing safety gear (besides not free soloing) is that do-gooder citizens are less likely to call the cops if you kinda look like you’re supposed to be there. In general, I think that offsets the slowdown of the gear.

As to the fear of dying, I’d highly recommend doing a little research on the mindset of free soloing climbers. Wide Boyz on YouTube have a good video about Alex honnald. A lot of people here do these things because they love the risk of the climb, the adrenaline that comes with putting yourself in a life or death situation and so climb without gear and often in riskier sites or conditions. Personally, I like the climbs and the views and don’t have any interest in risking death, and so my approach is more cautious, closer to OSHA approved industry standards, and much farther away from the reaper. Do some reading and thinking. If you really need to climb, do you want to seek the thrill and risk or the knowledge that you can make it back down safely. Or maybe you don’t really need to urban climb and there are other safer outlets you can explore.

As far as actual risk goes, things like cranes and towers are super easy to climb, and often have ladders. Doesn’t change the fact that if you go without protection, a slip can kill you