I think its mostly tongue and cheek. Basically, he's saying that the bike is a tool for the non-conformist, and he'll be damned if he corrupts it by using it to transport him to his oppressive, very much conformist, job.
To ride a bike to work is to subsume pleasure into the machinations of productivity
Of course, the obvious argument back is that riding the bike to work, is going to get you to financial independence faster, which means you can stop working for the man sooner.