14 Sep 2023
St Albans City is one of the country’s busiest stations for bike parking – but it also suffers from the highest number of cycle thefts.
New research by Direct Line Insurance has revealed bike thefts at UK train stations is up 39 per cent year-on-year, with St Albans City reporting 260 incidents in 2022.
6,956 bikes were reported stolen from railway stations in 2022, up 39 per cent from the 4,999 thefts in 2021, and just 1.5 per cent of bikes (103) reported stolen last year were recovered.
Govia Thameslink Railway’s safety, health and security director Samantha Facey said: “With our commitment to encourage more people to travel sustainably to the station, we’ve installed over 400 cycle spaces at St Albans, making it one of the country’s busiest stations for bike parking. The percentage increase in thefts reflects the rise in people cycling to stations since the significantly lower levels during the Covid pandemic.
“To combat this crime, we’ve continued to work closely with the British Transport Police and to strengthen cycle parking security at many stations. At St Albans, we’ve installed a key-fob entry system and extra CCTV coverage, and will soon be putting up stronger, higher fencing.
“Ultimately, though, the best line of defence is a quality D-lock attaching the frame and front wheel to the bike stand, and a second lock securing the rear wheel to the frame. We also encourage our customers to get their bikes marked and registered, and we conduct regular cycle-marking surgeries.”
