Since the introduction of anti-theft bikes on campus last year, the University of Illinois Police Department has seen a decrease in the number of stolen bikes reported by students.

Anti-theft bikes are tracked by GPS and put out around campus by the UIPD. When a tracked bike is stolen, the police can locate the person by tracing the bike.

Patrick Wade, communications director in the Division of Public Safety, said according to the reported bike theft data, the anti-theft bike initiative has been effective.

Prior to the start of the initiative, 30 bikes were reported stolen in the time period between Aug. 23 and Oct. 9 of 2017. This year, only 18 bikes were reported stolen in the same interval of time.

Wade said bike theft is a crime of opportunity, meaning people do not necessarily plan on stealing bikes in advance.

University deters bike thieves with GPS

Made by Shana Olivero

“Bicycles become an easy target because they’re left in public areas and they’re unattended,” Wade said. “A lot of times they’re unlocked, so they’re a very simple target.”

Wade said the introduction of VeoRides to campus may also be a factor contributing to the decrease in bike thefts. Although he does not have specific numbers on this, Wade said it is possible the less personal bikes there are on campus, the fewer thefts there will be.

Linda Jackson, communications director of VeoRide, said like anti-theft bikes, VeoRides can be tracked down and retrieved using GPS.

“The idea is to keep the bikes in circulation, so they are available to the entire campus and Urbana-Champaign community,” Jackson said in an email.

Jeffrey Wong, sophomore in Engineering, had his bike stolen last November from the bike rack at Europa House.

Wong said he uses anti-theft locking nuts on his current bike since the incident. He thinks bikes are very easy to steal because they can be taken apart without much difficulty.

“You can disassemble them with a wrench and screwdriver and most bike locks themselves can be cut with bolt cutters,” Wong said in an email.

He also said he believes bikes are easy to hide and difficult to track because they do not have a lot of identifying information, such as license plates.

Wong said he appreciates the UIPD’s efforts to decrease bike thefts. He said they should also place cheaper locks on several of the anti-theft bikes to stop bike thieves who may be aware of the initiative from simply avoiding the unlocked bikes.

“It’s important for these bait bikes to be a good representation of the kind of bikes you normally find around campus,” Wong said.

Wade said one way for students to prevent their bikes from being stolen is to purchase a sturdy U-lock rather than just a cable lock, as the cable locks are easier to cut or break.

U-locks can cost as much as $5 or $10 more than cable locks, but Wade said it is a small investment that will go a long way.

Another step Wade recommends is to register personal bikes with the University. Although this will not necessarily stop theft, the UIPD can track and return the bike more easily if it is lost or stolen using the serial number and description of the bike.

“Bikes are out there and being tracked by the police,” Wade said. “And hopefully, we can get the word out that we’re looking for these and we’re hoping we can deter theft.”

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