A taxi driver acted in a psychotic manor toward me. Cannon St -> Tooly street

You're right; it is a shamefully badly designed 'facility' that invites confrontation and collisions. One particular factor in that location is foreign tourists who, surprisingly, aren't alert to every nuance of British road/pavement/bike lane design and, like all of us when we are somewhere unfamiliar, tend to be distracted and looking anywhere but down at out feet or up at traffic lights. Another factor is theatre goers leaving in great numbers at the end of a performance. It would be some help there if the bike lane was at least coloured in to differentiate it.
Either way it is up to cyclists to give way to pedestrians. And if you use that section regularly then you know what to expect and can figure out ways of dealing with it. One of those ways is the highly technical manouevre known as 'slowing down'. Or you can just go through every time getting angry.

I work just opposite that corner and strap my bike up close by, I could use the junction if I wanted to but I'd rather cycle down kingsway and round aldwych. The junction there is a shocker, I forget about it when I'm on foot too and I cycle everyday. Fuck knows what chance peds have.

On the plus side is quite an entertaining spot to sit, grab a coffee or beer and watch the close calls