British Columbia·Photos

Granville Island tries to put a brake on bike theft

Granville Island — a top tourist destination in Vancouver — has also become a hot spot for bike theft. But a new initiative is trying to put a stop to that.

Bike theft on Granville Island increased 300% between 2014 and 2015

Tina Lovgreen · CBC News · Posted: Jul 25, 2016 9:11 PM EDT | Last Updated: July 26, 2016

Const. Robert Brunt with the Vancouver Police Department says while bike thieves are getting smarter bike owners aren't always locking up their bikes properly. (Tina Lovgreen/CBC)

Granville Island is doing whatever it takes to stop bike thieves after bicycle theft in the area increased by 300 per cent in one year.

"Granville Island is an extremely popular destination for cyclists, so unfortunately that makes it a popular destination for bike thieves," said Lisa Ono, manager of public affairs and programming at Granville Island CMHC.

Granville Island is a popular destination for cyclists, but that also makes it a hot spot for bike theft. (Tina Lovgreen/CBC)

A joint initiative which involves the Vancouver Police Department and the City of Vancouver — called Operation Rudy — is aiming to deter bike theft. One of the ways it is increasing security is by offering a free bicycle valet service.

Lisa Ono, a spokeswoman for Granville Island said they're trying to encourage more people to ride their bikes to Granville Island by putting in place initiatives that deter theft. (Tina Lovgreen/CBC)

Cyclists can drop off their bikes for free seven days a week from 10:00 a.m. PT to 7:30 p.m. for free from now until Labour Day.

"It's been really busy. Yesterday, we filled up twice," said Sinead Stinson, coordinator with The Bicycle Valet.

The free bike valet program has been so popular that on Sunday the storage room was twice filled to capacity. (Tina Lovgreen/CBC)

The company, which has been in Vancouver for 10 years and has taken care of more than 130,000 bikes, says it has never lost one.

"So many people have either experienced bike theft or know someone who has and just to have that peace of mind while you're at Granville Island is so amazing," Stinson said.

Sinead Stinson with The Bicycle Valet said the free bike parking on Granville Island has been appreciated by customers, many of whom shared their bike theft story with her. (Tina Lovgreen/CBC)

While dropping off your bicycle you can also register it with Project 529, a free bicycle registration system that helps identify your bike in the event that it is stolen.

The system launched in Vancouver seven months ago and 9,200 bikes have been registered. There are currently 120 bikes reported missing through the program and more than a dozen bikes have been recovered this month.

But Const. Rob Brunt, the Vancouver Police Department's bike theft expert said part of the problem is too many cyclists using cheap locks to secure their wheels.

"They're using cable locks," said Brunt.

"Buy yourself a decent lock. A cheap bike nowadays is $1,000 and people are spending $10 to $20 on a bike lock. It is not a secure method for you," he said.

Constable Brunt said appropriate locks and locking methods will go a long way in keeping your bike secure. (Tina Lovgreen/CBC)

To combat the issue of cheap locks, the project has provided a number of the local businesses to hand out loaner locks.

Cyclists can grab top of the line folding locks by leaving photo ID with the business in exchange for the lock.

"They are very secure locks. We don't care if you already have a lock. Come in and get a lock. Two locks are better than one," said Brunt.

Loaner locks can be found at Cats Social House, Granville Island Brewing Taproom, Off the Tracks Cafe, A Bread Affair, False Creek Community Centre and The Keg.

"We do have people come in and say my bike was stolen, what do I do? And we direct them to security and it's heartbreaking, its heartbreaking to see," said Tanya Belanger, owner of A Bread Affair, who swears by the folding locks that are being loaned out.