A contribution from an English cat-lover who has lost much-loved cats to traffic on the busy road outside our house, and also shared life with some fuury purrers who have lived to a great age(18 in one instance).
We don't have a personal resident cat at the moment 'cos Oliver, who is street-wise 'n' careful,comes over to see us every day and has the watch as resident feline.
He is male, 13 year old, neutered, a great pal.
We cannot take seeing another of our pets killed by traffic. However, some never, ever, went on the road and lived to ripe old ages.
My humble opinion is that if you feel strong enough, and want a feline companion, let 'em out and take the consequences.
Some, about 50%, sail through the traffic, dogs, etc. and come out smiling. Some do not. Live with it. It's awful, but a fact of life/death.
In the UK we don't have racoons, coyotes etc.But traffic & dogs are a problem. I don't feel that a cat should be kept a prisoner in the house, even if the outside proves too much.
My thoughts.
I Love cats.