Lock it up or lose it cyclists are warned

SPEND money on a decent bike lock or pay the price, cyclists in Dublin have been warned.

A total of 4,950 bikes were reported stolen in Dublin in 2014, up from 1,873 in 2008, latest figures reveal.

The Lord Mayor of Dublin, Cllr Críona Ní Dhálaigh, launched a new Bike Security Campaign last week to raise awareness of the issue of bike theft and alert cyclists to the need to use higher quality locks.

“It is vital that cycling is supported and encouraged in the city and a big part of this is to reduce bike theft,” she said.

A Dublin Cycling Campaign survey from December 2014 showed that 66 per cent of bikes stolen in Dublin are locked using cable locks or sub-standard U-locks or chain locks.

According to the group, these can be easily cut through and offer limited security. 

The Bike Theft Group recommends that cyclists use U-locks with the ‘Sold Secure’ accreditation as their main lock, with cable or chain and padlocks only to be used as a secondary lock.

‘Sold Secure’ is an independent rating system for locks.

The Dublin Cycling Campaign says that one in six victims of bike theft in Dublin stop cycling altogether and a further 26 per cent reduce the amount they cycle following a bike theft.

David Timoney from the Cycling Campaign said: “The evidence from our survey as well as surveys in the UK show that there is a strong link between bike theft and cycling numbers.

“If we are serious about achieving the targets for cycling model share in Dublin, bike theft is one of the areas that needs to be tackled.” 

The Bike Theft working group was set up earlier this year to tackle the growing problem of bike theft in the city and has representatives from the gardai, the National Transport Authority, Dublin Cycling Campaign, bike shops and Dublin City Council.

“London and Amsterdam in particular have had great success in reducing bike theft in recent years and with all stakeholders working together through this Bike Theft Group we aim to achieve the same in Dublin,” added Cllr Ciaran Cuffe, who chairs the group.

Inspector Liam Geraghty said the gardai  support the continued increase in bicycle use in Dublin City.

“Targeting bike theft is a three prong approach: education, engineering and enforcement,” he said.

“This poster campaign will inform bicycle users on crime prevention through the need to invest in high quality locks and how to lock their bicycle securely at all times.”

The National Transport Authority (NTA) representative on the group, Cormac Ross, said that with the significant increase in cyclists in Dublin in recent years, bike theft has become a more serious issue.

“The NTA is happy to collaborate with other key stakeholders in a joint effort to address bicycle theft in a targeted way,” he said. “The use of higher quality locks by cyclists is likely to result in the most significant positive impact on theft numbers in the short term, and this initiative is focused on the delivery of that key message”.