Did you know that London is the UK capital with the highest bike theft rate? A report published by Transport for London found that more than 17,000 bicycles were stolen in 2019 alone - an increase of 13.7% compared to 2018!
It's no wonder biking in the British capital has become so risky and it's important for cyclists to be aware of this issue before riding around the city. Let’s dive into why London has such a high rate of bike theft, how cyclists can keep their bikes secure, and what authorities are doing about it.
Since the late 1990s, the number of bicycle thefts in Greater London has continued to be significantly higher than any other region in the United Kingdom.
This can mainly be attributed to the large population and low penalty for being caught stealing a bicycle. Fines and sentences for bicycle theft in Greater London have seen very little increase even as property crime has been steadily decreasing.
In addition, there are currently few methods of preventing bicycle theft and no way of tracking or recovering a stolen bicycle after it is taken.
This has caused people in Greater London to invest heavily in bike lock technology, such as U-locks, chain locks, cable locks, and more recently GPS trackers, just to keep their bicycles safe.
Despite these advancements however, it seems as if Greater London still faces an uphill battle against its high rate of bicycle theft per capita.
