Bike thefts gear calls for more cages at railway stations in the west
Bike thefts across Melbourne’s west are escalating to grave heights, with cyclists calling for an extra security measure at train stations.
North West
Don't miss out on the headlines from North West. Followed categories will be added to My News.
BICYCLE cages must be rolled out across all train stations in Melbourne’s inner-west as bike thefts continue to escalate, cyclists say.
The calls come as Footscray police hit the streets on bikes in a blitz to curb the thefts.
Maribyrnong cyclists told the Leader thieves were slashing tyres and dashing off with their bikes, in what has been dubbed as a quick “slash or dash” move.
MARIBYRNONG BIKE SHED FACES EVICTION
CYCLISTS PROTEST TO MAKE HELMETS OPTIONAL
NEW BIKE SHED AT COBURG SCHOOL
There are bike cages at Footscray, West Footscray and Yarraville stations but cyclists who travel to Tottenham and Seddonstations have to leave their bikes unsecured.
Cyclist Patrick Laverick had his bike stolen from Tottenham Station, as well as his tyres slashed twice in the past month,despite using a lock.
“We really need a bike cage at the station — some secure place that we can use to lock our bikes up,” he said. “There’s nopoint buying a new bike or a valuable one, if there is a risk of getting it stolen again.”
The Parkiteer bike cages at Metro railway stations are managed by Bicycle Victoria.
They provide free 24-hour, undercover and secure bike parking at 40 stations through the use of a smart access card.
According to the Crime Statistics Agency, there were 163 bicycle thefts in Maribyrnong in the year to June 2018.
Footscray police are cracking down on bike thefts through multi-tier operation Refurbish, which will see police jumping onbikes themselves to patrol.
“It’s no secret that we are having issues around bicycle thefts in Maribyrnong,” Sergeant Travis Costelow said.
“You can expect that if you are riding around on a stolen bicycle that you will be spoken to and will be arrested.”
Sgt Costelow said railway stations were a hot spot for bicycle thefts.
He advised cyclists to lock their bike and engravecontact details or a driver’s licence number on them.
Bicycle Victoria spokeswoman Leyla Asadi said bike cages would go theextra mile and ensure greater security against lock-busting thieves.
“It’s clear that stations such as Tottenham need secure bike parking, while existing cages such as the nearby West Footscray,as well as Williams Landing and Laverton are at capacity,” she said.
“More cages would result in more people riding bikes and reduced traffic around stations in peak times.”
MORE NEWS
The rising stars set to take VTCA season by storm
Talented youngsters continue to make their way through the ranks of Victorian Turf Cricket Association clubs. Here’s some of the rising stars to look out for this season.
’Panic and terror’: Gang hoods go on bloodthirsty spree
A Melbourne hood carjacked multiple victims during a horror “crime wave” while his vile mate raped a woman by knifepoint.