Some of you may recall that my town of Berkley has been attempting to do something about bike parking and bike racks. While we still don't have any bike racks, things are getting closer!
This past March I put together a plan for installing installing 9 upside-down "U" style racks along 12 Mile road (a major portion of our downtown area) within the city. The Berkley Environmental Advisory Committee (BEAC) approved it and we sent it to the city manager. In May, the City Council approved the funding for the racks. So, all that's left is sign off on the locations and quantity by the public safety (police), city planner, and the city manager, who then sends the final plan sent to council for approval (there may be others players, but those are key players). After that, assuming council approval, the racks get ordered, installed, and we have somewhere to lock up our bikes safely. In theory, this is all going to happen by the end of July.
Showing posts with label bike theft. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bike theft. Show all posts
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Some atypically good stolen bike news
Photo ©: SF Examiner
I had heard the other day that Lance Armstrong had a bike (along with a few others too) that was stolen out of the back of his team truck at the Tour of California. This bike was a one of kind track bike, so I expected that it would be returned, because really, unless you've got access to an out-of-country sale... who's going to buy it? Oh, who am I kidding, unfortunately, someone probably would.
Anyway, the interesting part of this story is what happened after it was stolen. So, the first thing that happened was that Armstrong tweeted the theft. Then someone started a Facebook group "1 Million Citizens Looking for Lance Armstrong's Stolen Bike". A few days later, the bike turns up. 
While that's good news obviously, the other bikes that were stolen with it have not turned up yet. While I'm sure they are high-end bikes,they probably aren't one and only custom bikes and therefore, are a lot less likely to turn up. This is the fate of many bikes in America (3,000 bikes in America are stolen every day (pdf)).
I will be interested to what impact the facebook and twittering had to do with the return of the bike (and hopefully, the other bikes as well). This interconnectedness should be a boon to the National Bike registry, it seems. Hopefully, better coordination comes from the NBR, social networking, and sales sites such as craigslist and ebay.
I am hopeful that perhaps this greater awareness and usage of these networks to will help to better cooridinate on bike theft and help others have more luck with returned bikes.
While that's good news obviously, the other bikes that were stolen with it have not turned up yet. While I'm sure they are high-end bikes,they probably aren't one and only custom bikes and therefore, are a lot less likely to turn up. This is the fate of many bikes in America (3,000 bikes in America are stolen every day (pdf)).I will be interested to what impact the facebook and twittering had to do with the return of the bike (and hopefully, the other bikes as well). This interconnectedness should be a boon to the National Bike registry, it seems. Hopefully, better coordination comes from the NBR, social networking, and sales sites such as craigslist and ebay.
I am hopeful that perhaps this greater awareness and usage of these networks to will help to better cooridinate on bike theft and help others have more luck with returned bikes.
Photo ©: Sacramento Police Department via cyclingnews.com
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