Regina police, U of R partnering up to get your stolen bike home

Bike thefts are an issue in Regina, and the University of Regina (U of R) campus is no exception. Since the end of March, campus security has received 19 reports of bike thefts.

Now, campus security and the Regina Police Service are both embracing an app aimed at curbing bike thefts and returning stolen bicycles to their owners — Project 529 Garage. 

“It’s basically a community watch for your bike. You have the ability to register your bike for free on the mobile app, and we’re out here today registering people’s bikes for them,” Cpl. Melissa Boxall explained.

A handful of police officers and campus security spent part of Monday afternoon taking photos of people’s bikes and most importantly recording the serial numbers.

Without that number, both Boxall and U of R campus security manager Scott Crawley said it can be difficult to reunite a bike with its owner.

“Regina police can search that database, we have available search capabilities to see if a bike is stolen, and somebody can report it through that app, so it can get recovered and we can find the owner,” Crawley said.

Kendria Symik was among the first to get her bike registered at the event. She’s never had a bike stolen before, but figured it would be good for extra security.

“I just bought this bike like two weeks ago, so I figured why not,” she said.

The Regina police will be holding registration events at the Regina Public Library’s Central and Glen Elm branches on Friday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

It’s free to sign up through the app anytime, but these registration events also include a free sticker saying your bike is registered with Project 529 Garage.