Lock your EBike securely
Bike safety is extremely important if you want to avoid the anxiety that comes along with reporting a stolen bike. with that said, you should know how to lock your bike properly in preventing theft of your bike. Here is some advice on locking your bike properly and securely wherever you might be. in the street, at home and at work or college.
In the street, locking your bike to a strong, immovable object in a busy area with lots of other bikes and CCTV cameras is a great start. But make sure you lock it in the right way too: locking the frame and the wheels, keeping the lock off the ground, and making sure you fill as much of the space inside a U-lock as you can.
If possible, use the same techniques you use in the street to lock your bike at home or at work. It doesn’t matter how secure your home or work environments seem, never leave your bike unlocked.
Locking your bike in the street
A bike locked badly in the street will disappear very quickly. Luckily, thinking carefully about where and how you lock your bike in the street can go a long way to prevent this happening…
Where should I lock my bike in the street?
Although the type of area you are in will effect this, there are some general tips which you should always try to follow…
Tip 1: Choose a busy place
Try to choose a busy location with lots of people walking past. If it’s an area well covered by CCTV, even better. Other people and CCTV make thieves nervous. They’d much prefer to be hidden away while they “work”.
Choose an place where lots of other bikes are already locked up. Ideally in the middle of a group of bikes rather than on the end. This serves three purposes:
Firstly, there’s bound to be badly locked bikes more tempting to a thief than your well-locked bike. Secondly, lots of bikes crammed together give a thief less room to maneuver and use their tools effectively.
And thirdly, the comings and goings of other cyclists may disturb them and if anyone is going to challenge a bike thief, (and lets face it most people just walk on by), its going to be other cyclists.
Tip 2: Choose an immovable object
A bike is only as secure as the object it is locked to. So make sure you always choose a fixed, immovable object that’s not easily broken.
Check the bike can’t be lifted over the top of whatever you’ve attached it to. Or that the object can’t be easily unscrewed or dismantled. Avoid trees, aluminium or wooden posts, sign posts, scaffolding and chain link fences.
If you choose metal railings, try to get the lock around as many railings as possible. But ideally the immovable object would be a specially designed bike rack that’s cemented into the ground.
Tip 3: Don’t give thieves clues
If you’re going to the cinema, the leisure center or anywhere else where you might be away from your bike for a significant time, consider locking your bike a couple of streets away.
Why? If a thief sees you locking your bike and then going in to any of these places they’ll know they’ve got a fair bit of time to work on your bike.
A summary of where to lock your bike in the street:
- choose a busy area with CCTV
- lock your bike in the middle of lots of other bikes
- always secure your bike to a fixed, immovable object, ideally a bike rack
- don’t lock your bike outside places you’ll clearly be for a long time
- if you know it’s a high theft area, take an extra lock
How should I lock my bike in the street?
Although a lot will depend on what sort of bike you’ve got, which lock you use and where you secure it, there are certain tips you should always follow…
Tip 1: Lock your frame
Always lock your frame to the immovable object. If you only secure your bike through the wheel, a thief will simply remove your wheel and walk off with the rest of the bike. This may sound obvious but it
happens all the time…
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