Reeder

I personally find unlit country roads extremely eerie at night and it makes me uncomfortable at junctions. I feel particularly vulnerable on my bike when compared to in my car in a biiiiiig way. On a bike you're there for people to be able to attack you personally without having to get through any barrier first.
I can completely understand people being worried riding through town at night, especially smaller females, as even as a male who's friends with most of the people around town who are out and drunk and likely to be an annoyance, I still feel uncomfortable compared to in a car.