Islanders urged to lock up their bikes as cycling group sounds the alarm about thefts
P.E.I. resident who had bicycle stolen says it was 'a sickening feeling'
On a board full of flyers near Founders' Hall in P.E.I., one features a photo of a teal-coloured bike and a note about an $800 reward for its return or tips on finding it.
The bicycle belongs to Meigan Aspin, who said she last saw it on July 30 when she locked it up outside the building on the Charlottetown waterfront.
She said she was sitting only steps away from the bike when it was stolen.
"To have it be that the lock was on the ground, cut, in this wide open, busy, high-traffic area was a sickening feeling," Aspin said.
Some Islanders like Aspin think bicycles are being stolen more frequently in P.E.I. She said bikes have become more "sophisticated," so their parts are now worth more money to thieves.
Cycling P.E.I. recently posted a warning about bike thefts across the Island, along with some suggestions for Islanders to protect their items.
Those included using strong, reliable locks; never leaving bikes unattended for extended periods of times; and storing bikes indoors or in well-lit, busy areas when possible.
Earlier this summer, around $10,000 worth of cycles — two e-bikes and a pedal bike — were stolen from a tour operator's locked trailer near the Confederation Trail in Charlottetown.
Taran Guest, owner of Nova Scotia-based Freewheeling Adventures, said someone used lock cutters to break into the trailer the night before a group was set to start out on a tour.
He said a guide was able to source replacement bikes, but that the company contacted Charlottetown police to report the thefts in the meantime.
"It reminded us of the importance of security and how staying in cities is always high risk, no matter how secure it feels," Guest said. "We just encourage people to be diligent and always aware that bicycles are flags for thieves."
It's really unfortunate because people invest a lot of money in bikes and they get connected to them.— Brett Doyle, Outer Limit Sports
The sentiment was shared by Brett Doyle, who owns the Charlottetown bike shop Outer Limit Sports.
He said the store is getting multiple calls on a weekly basis from customers who have had their bikes stolen.
"It's really unfortunate because people invest a lot of money in bikes and they get connected to them," Doyle said.
"For lots of people, that's their mode of transportation. They use [them] to get to and from work or they use it for exercise."
In Doyle's estimation, bike thefts in P.E.I. have increased significantly over the past five to 10 years.
While lock technology hasn't changed much recently, Doyle said customers have been buying better quality ones lately.
Contact authorities in case of theft, experts say
If your bike is stolen, Doyle said the best course of action is to contact police and file a report.
It worked for Guest — after the tour operator spoke with Charlottetown police about the theft from the trailer, officers were able to locate the two e-bikes that had been stolen. The pedal bike remains missing.
Doyle said securely locking bicycles and storing them indoors are other ways to protect them.
Apart from the posters, Aspin also reported the theft to police and said she was told they would be looking at surveillance footage from the area.
She's also taken to social media to ask for help locating her bike.
"I've been getting huge support," she said. "People just have kind of a heartfelt way of showing disappointment that you'd be going through such a thing."
Moving forward, Aspin said she'll be more cognizant about where she locks up her bike, and said she'll purchase GPS tracking tags in case she's the victim of another theft.
"I'm going to take probably a lot bigger precaution in the future."
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With files from Gwyneth Egan and Jackie Sharkey