REGINA – If you own a bicycle in the Queen City you know how difficult it can be to keep it safe, and it turns out the number of bike thefts are actually on the rise.
“We came back to grab our bikes and there was some guy with a hacksaw going away at the lock,” recalled resident Tyson Lee after recently finding someone trying to steal his bike.
It turns out it’s an all too familiar story.
This time last year, there were 264 bike thefts reported to the Regina Police Service (RPS), while so far in 2015 there have been 438 bikes stolen.
“Generally bicycles are stolen when they’re left not secured or sometimes left in an unlocked garage,” said Elizabeth Popowich, RPS spokesperson. She added that the thefts are often crimes of opportunity, but couldn’t say exactly why we’re seeing a spike.
There’s a variety of lock options available, but the owner of Dutch Cycle, Freddy Vandelinden recommends doubling up: “The best thing we can do to make our bike not look like an easy take, is to have more locks than the one beside it.”
Vandelinden adds that cyclists should remove the bike’s front tire when locking it to something secure, in a high traffic area.
“Finding something that the bike can’t be slipped up and over, or the obstacle can’t be slipped through the lock is really important,” he said.
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However, finding a proper place can be a challenge. Luke Nichols with Bike Regina said he’d like to see more racks downtown.
He believes employers could also be more accommodating to staff who ride to work by offering them a place to store their bikes “in the basement of the building or take out a parking space or two and put in a cage would be beneficial,” he said.
Even the best efforts to secure your bike can fall short and Vandelinden recommends planning for the worst by leaving your most expensive bike at home on a daily basis.
If your bike is stolen make sure to have its serial number handy and contact police right away.
Stealing a bike can result in a charge of theft under, or over, $5,000.
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