Cyclists need secure, reliable parking

Toronto has a huge bicycle theft problem. In 2021 3,134 bicycle thefts were reported to Toronto Police. Of these reported thefts only 24 were recovered. Most bike thefts are not reported to police.  

Much of the blame lies in our inadequate bicycle parking facilities. There are currently only 4 City-operated Bicycle Station facilities. Offices and condo towers are required to build a minimum number of secure parking spaces but  there is no construction Standard, only construction Guidelines. Parking can be and often is behind a chain-link fence in some hidden corner of a parking garage, and property management bears no liability for the inevitable thefts. To add further insult condo boards frequently disallow residents to take their bikes inside their unit. So most bikes are parked outside, in the open, to rust under rain and snow and eventually be stripped down for parts and stolen.

For a city with a growing bike lane network we sure are short on secure places to park our bikes once we reach our destinations.

If we are to get serious about getting more people out of their cars and onto bikes, for the sake of safer roads and cleaner air, we need to expand the reach of secure bicycle parking. That means building and staffing and making more accessible more Bicycle Stations at more transit hubs and updating our By-Laws to require offices and condos to have facilities that better deter theft.