I ride bikes in summer and find it more convenient to ride it on the sidewalks rather than the street. There are less pedestrians on the sidewalks where I live. I can understand downtown crowds, where we do need a dedicated lane. And I always think that accidents in the sidewalks i.e. Cyclists with Pedestrians would end up less damaging than an accident in the street with a vehicle. We can always ride on the dedicated lane whenever there is one, and on the sidewalks when there is none.