I am a car-free commuter, roadie and MTB'er in Dallas proper. On my commute (and on my road training rides) I ride vehicularly. That is, I ride as though I were a car. I was a big city driver for many years until I went car-free and have been heralded as an excellent driver. I take those skills to my bicycle riding. I take the center-right of the lane, stop at stop signs and lights, dismount on the sidewalk, signal all of my moves, defer to pedestrians, and yield the right of way when it is posted. I am courteous and will pull forward when I'm the first in the right lane to allow right turners to make their right turn (I did that in my car). My commute is only 2.4 miles long and usually happens in the wee hours of the morning (I open a Starbucks), but sometimes it's a bit later. On my road bike, I'm typically riding during high traffic hours.
The MTB, I hit it hard on the dirt and don't worry about traffic laws
. However, I do use the DART Rail to get within 2 miles of the nearest MTB trail--20 miles away--(bicycles are allowed on any train/bus at any time) and practice the above road riding practices in getting to the station and from the station to the trail.