Vancouver police identify top hot spots for bicycle theft

Vancouver Police have identified the top locations for bicycle theft in the city last year — crimes they say that could have fairly easily been prevented.

Const. Jason Doucette says property crime can be avoided with a little foresight.

"We all have a role to play. Through education and simple actions, police and citizens can reduce property crime," he said.

Here is a map showing the 12 top locations in the city for bicycle theft in 2016, according to police. Click on a dot for more details.

Top 12 bicycle theft locations

•  0 Athletes Way  (Olympic Village)  29 thefts
• 1600 Johnston St  (Granville Island) 27 thefts
• 1400 Anderson St  (Granville Island)  24 thefts
• 900 Burrard St  (Burrard and Smith Street)  20 thefts
• 1400 Quebec St  (Quebec and E 30th ave) 20 thefts
• 2600 E Broadway Ave  (E Broadway and Penticton) 18 thefts
•  0 W Pender St  ( Pender and Abbott St) 18 thefts 
• 600 Stamps Landing  (False Creek) 16 thefts
• 1700 Beach Ave  (Beach and Bidwell)16 thefts
• 700 Templeton Dr  (Templeton Drive and Adanac St) 13 thefts
• 300 W Georgia St  (W Georgia and Homer Street) 11 thefts 
• 100 Keefer St  (Keefer and Columbia Street) 11 thefts

Ironically, the top spots for bicycle thefts and the number of thefts don't appear to have changed much in nine years. 

The Vancouver Sun did its own analysis of bike thefts between 2008 and 2012 — and the locations are nearly the same.

In an effort to curb bike theft, the VPD advises riders to download a bike registry app with a "log it or lose it" approach. The app is a joint venture between Simon Fraser University students and the VPD.

Bike owners input information into the app, including licence plate, registration numbers and photos, so that if stolen property is recovered, it can quickly be returned.

More than 2,600 bikes were reported stolen in Vancouver last year, but police say that number is in fact much higher because people aren't alerting authorities to the thefts.

"The VPD recovered over 2,000 bikes in 2016. Unfortunately, we were only able to reunite approximately 15 per cent of those bikes to their owners," said Doucette. 

Police auction thousands of unclaimed stolen items every year, underscoring the need to register valuables and contact police in the event of a theft.