With a claim that bike lanes increase pollution, a San Francisco resident has managed to put the brakes on the city’s pro-biking plans. In 2004, San Francisco unveiled a proposal to create more bike lanes and bike parking, aiming to have 10 percent of city trips taken on two wheels by 2010. Enter Rob Anderson, who doesn’t own a car but is no fan of cyclists. “The behavior of the bike people on city streets is always annoying,” he says. “This ‘Get out of my way, I’m not burning fossil fuels.'” Anderson sued the city to make it do an environmental impact review, saying that giving more street space to bicyclists will lead to more air pollution from cars idled in traffic jams. He won, halting the city’s plans. Officials are moving slowly on the review, hoping to cover all their bases to keep Anderson from suing again — as he’s already pondering. “Regardless of the obvious dangers,” he wrote on his blog, “some people will ride bikes in San Francisco for the same reason Islamic fanatics will engage in suicide bombings — because they are politically motivated to do so.”
