I lived in Boulder in the 80’s, and would agree with that. I now live in Colorado Springs, which is not nearly as bike friendly, but most bicyclists obey most of the laws. Granted, few bicyclists will come to a complete halt at a stop sign, fewer even than cars, but almost all slow down. And no one in any vehicle stops for a right on red. I think you’d find the percentage of cars obeying the speed limit is even lower than the percentage of bikes breaking all laws other than coming to a complete stop at a stop sign. I will freely admit to routinely speeding by more than 5 mph in a car, and to only bringing my bike to less than 5 mph at most stop signs.
Still, what does whether or not cyclists obey all the laws have to do with the OP? It is almost always safer on the road in the US. It is actually illegal to ride on a sidewalk here, although I’ll do it on a busy enough road that doesn’t have driveways.
It’s actually legal to cycle on the freeway in Oregon, except for a few specific sections where it’s deemed unsafe (usually because of a lack of wide shoulder in those sections).
I’ve ridden on the freeway once, and will never do so again. It’s not a pleasant experience. It’s not just the fact that all the traffic is going 65+ mph, but the incredible amount of trash on the shoulders. Some of it was hard to dodge while staying off the lanes.
Not coming to a full stop at stop signs is known as an Idaho Stop, because it’s legal in Idaho to do so, provided that there’s no crosstraffic. There was a proposal earlier this year to make them legal in Oregon, but unfortunately it didn’t get enough traction.