It’s a smart idea to lock up your bike around campus, but if you leave it there too long, you might see someone else taking it for a ride. 

St. Thomas Public Safety has collected 135 “abandoned” bikes that were locked up on campus and tagged for removal between September and February of this school year. Of the “abandoned” bikes, 46 were donated to a local bike shop that fixes and repairs the bikes and donates them to groups who use them.

“We try to keep the abandoned bikes to a minimum by periodically tagging them for removal,” said Michael Barrett, associate director of Public Safety. “All property recovered by Public Safety is retained for 90 days and is then donated.”

Barrett said a large percentage of the bikes are claimed by the owners. Out of the 135 abandoned bikes, 57 were picked up by the student, many within the same day they were collected. Any bike that went unclaimed past the 90 days was then donated.

Senior Jessica McDonald feels some of the bikes may not have been truly abandoned. She believes the winter months are the wrong time to define if a bike has been actually abandoned.

“If you are from out-of-state and you have a bike with you, you’re not going to leave it up in your room because the rooms are very small,” McDonald said. “You’re not going to be able to bring it back home, but you want it here for the spring, so you’re going to have it locked up outside.”

McDonald said since most students do not regularly ride their bikes during the winter months, they only check to see if it’s still locked up but fail to see the tag left by Public Safety that can get buried under the snow.

First-year graduate student Peter Kiggundu regularly rides his bike to campus. He said students get a fair warning and thinks Public Safety is doing the right thing.

“(Public Safety) says you should take home your bikes, especially before the winter, and if it goes beyond this day we shall take them and donate them,” Kiggundu said.

Barrett encourages bike owners to register their bike through Public Safety and use a high quality lock to deter theft.

“Just like a motor vehicle, I don’t recommend students bring bikes unless they will be regularly used,” Barrett said.

Kristopher Jobe can be reached at jobe1276@stthomas.edu.