Constable Samuel Stubbs, ANU Security operations manager Jodi Finn and Constable Michelle Grobbelaar promote bike safety on campus as thieves become bolder. Photos: Nicholas Ward.
Armed with an engraver, ANU Security operations manager Jodi Finn is helping to tackle the campus’s persistent bike theft problem.
Jodi is using the engraver to carve names and phone numbers into frames. It’s a simple strategy but one that can save bike owners a headache when trying to recover stolen wheels.
It’s part of a new initiative at the university, which is trying to keep students and staff safe from losing their bicycles to increasingly brazen thieves.
“There are some very professional bike thieves that operate around Canberra,” Jodi said.
”There is quite a black market for it. ANU has about 40 bike sheds on campus. We are a very cycling-heavy community.
“We’ve seen instances on our security cameras of bike thieves bringing down angle grinders and other heavy-duty equipment to be able to force entry into our bike sheds and take what they want.
”So incredibly frustrating. Costs the uni a lot in repair bills, and it costs our community more in lost items.”
The engraving will be available year-round through ANU Security, and Jodi said the plan was to promote it during O Week.
She launched the initiative alongside ACT Policing and Pedal Power at a Cop Pop-Up at the ANU.
ACT Policing is warning cyclists that bike theft is increasing in the Territory.
“We’ve had a lot of bike thefts in this sort of concentrated area being the city and ANU, which has affected a lot of students, and we’re trying to spread some education just to help bring that number of bike thefts down,” Constable Samuel Stubbs said.
ACT Policing is urging bike owners to adopt these safety tips:
- Lock it – don’t leave your bike unsecured
- Use a heavy-duty lock and fasten your wheels
- Don’t skimp on locks
- Lock your frame and wheels to fixed objects
- Park in places that are well-lit and secure.
ANU staff member Nancy Richardson was excited to participate in the awareness campaign, bringing her bike to campus for engraving. She said she had had some close calls with thieves.
“I always park my bike outside the building I work in … I went out to unlock my bike, and I could see a cut in the actual bike lock itself, but it hadn’t gotten through. So that’s good. I had good luck,” Nancy said.
“I’ve had two colleagues who’ve had their bicycles stolen from campus in various places. So not perfect, not great.”
Jodi Finn engraves Nancy Richardson’s bike. Nancy praised the move and said she hoped it would deter theft.
If thieves do target you, several steps can make recovering your bike easier. The police suggest registering it on the Bikelinc database, a joint initiative with Crime Stoppers ACT.
They also advise cyclists to keep some kind of identifying information about their bikes, such as the serial number, a photo, a description of unique characteristics, or engraving their details on it.
Constable Michelle Grobbelaar said measures such as bike identification were important because without them, tracking down the stolen goods could be difficult.
“At our exhibit management centre in Mitchell, we have hundreds of bikes that we can’t return to owners because we don’t know who the owners are,” she said.
“This is why the engraving is also a really great way for us to quickly get in contact with the owner and have that bike back to them as soon as it’s recovered.”
Police warn that it is the owner’s responsibility to prove that a recovered bike belongs to them. If they can’t, the police might not be able to return the property. Bikes not reclaimed in six months are disposed of through a police auction.
However, Jodi said that going forward, the ANU would encourage everyone on campus to protect their bikes.
“Please jump on Bikelinc, regardless of whether you’re an ANU member or not, and register your bike,” she said.
”We want it to get home to you. And for heaven’s sake, invest in a really, really good bike lock. That is the best deterrent out there in the first place.”
