<p>Just wondering if bike theft is a common problem on campus. Are there a lot of bikers on campus or do most people walk?</p>
<p>Hi, I’m a current freshman.</p>
<p>I haven’t heard of any big problems with bike theft on campus. I would say that there are a lot of bikers AND a lot of people who prefer to walk. Personally, I love the convenience of biking, especially since it can be difficult to get from some of my classes in the Shelby Quad to the main quad in 10 minutes if I walk. I would say that as long as you always lock your bike to a bike rack with a secure lock you won’t have a problem. Thieves will look for easy targets, so don’t make yourself one! </p>
<p>my friend’s bike seat was severely vandalized, and got stolen on next day.
bike theft seems pretty common, and some jerks can even go far by picking the lock or tear off the bike lock ropes…
however the cctv are around pretty much everywhere, and if u see thieves riding ur bikes, it will be easy to catch(cant believe they think they can just ride stolen bikes around).</p>
<p>i didnt see many people who ride bikes compared to the number of students. most of them walk or take buses.</p>
<p><a href=“12 bikes reported stolen to UAPD this semester - The Crimson White”>http://cw.ua.edu/article/2014/09/12-bikes-reported-stolen-to-uapd-this-semester</a></p>
<p>Unfortunately, this can happen, my student’s bike was vandalized right in front of his residence house. It was locked and chained. Again unfortunately, there will always be some idiots who think damaging others’ property is a sport. It can happen anywhere. </p>
<p>Thanks. Sounds like it’s not too bad whereas at my son’s school everyone should expect to get theirs stolen at least 1 time during their 4 years of school. My son’s bike lasted a week this year so I guess the theft rings were stocking up after a summer of not so many bikes on campus. Next bike I buy will be very ugly and I am going to spray paint it orange…easy to spot in the bike racks and who would want to steal it!!!</p>
<p>Do they sell stolen bikes?</p>
<p>Or do they just ride on them? Won’t the original owners see them? Oh well…the school REALLY is big, but who knows?</p>
<p>Most are sold but one friend had hers stolen in Feb. and on the last day of classes she was locking up the new bike her mom got her when she sees her stolen bike in the rack. She waited for the thief and after he unlocked it she flipped it over to show her name engraved in the paint. Off she rode with her bike!! Another friend found his stolen bike on craigslist an hour away from campus and campus police went and got it. The next week they stole the back tire and seat. So I would say most probably go to bike theft rings. With over 20,000 bikes on campus they have a continuous supply.</p>
<p>I guess I shouldn’t get a bike. Thanks for the response :-)</p>
<p>There is a campus bike rental service, cost something like $10/mo, and you can turn in and get a new bike every month.</p>
<p>Will I be responsible if the rental bike gets stolen?</p>
<p>I don’t know. Probably will. From what I’ve heard, if you lock it up properly it should be no problem. And the bikes you get from the rental place is not the type a thief would want.</p>
<p>Why? are they too old? </p>
<p>I don’t think so, but they are one speed cruiser bikes, not fancy mountain or road bikes with multiple gears.</p>
<p>oh I see, </p>
<p>From what I’ve read bike thefts don’t seem to be too big an issue at UA. I like the bike rental idea-thanks will probably
do that instead of bringing one next year.</p>
<p>That article says how many bikes were stolen, but without a number of total bikes on campus (even estimated) or a number of registered bikes, it’s a pretty meaningless number. Obviously 12 out of 100 would be a big problem, but 12 out of 10,000 is fairly insignificant. </p>
<p>I just know my son has a pretty decent bike that was given to him by a relative that has participated number of bike races. It’s a few years old, but my son keeps it in good condition. Because it’s a decent bike he does have a good lock and makes sure he locks it securely, But he never had a problem while living on campus and keeping it there freshman year and never had a problem regularly riding it to campus from his apartment last year.</p>
<p>I’m sure bike theft/vandalism is a problem, but at least based on my son’s experience I wouldn’t say it’s a ‘big’ problem. </p>
<p>No, it is not a big problem, just wanted you to realize that it was a possibility. A good lock is a deterrent but like I said previously, you can always bring your bike inside your room. I would venture to say that most thefts happen late at night when the campus is not busy.</p>
<p>DS, a junior just recovered the bike he lost between his freshman year and summer. He had it locked outside the dorm while he went on a 2 week trip with Alabama professors. When he returned from the trip to work on campus that summer, it was gone. Last week he located it in the UA surplus with stolen/lost bikes. (surplus.UA.edu)</p>
<p>Wow, great story, sacto! I think that some ‘thieves’ probably case the situation, so to speak, and see that a bike hasn’t been moved in awhile, so they feel that it is there for the pickin’?</p>
<p>Definitely pays to register any bike, if you bring one to campus. Also, I recall that UA Police had great advice on registering electronic equipment, as well. See this guide to Safer Living esp pages 10-12: <a href=“http://police.ua.edu/images/saferlivingguide.pdf”>http://police.ua.edu/images/saferlivingguide.pdf</a> </p>