Abandoned Bikes
 

Does anyone know what happens to abandoned locked bikes? I see them around the city all the time here in Philadelphia. Sometimes they have been partially stripped for parts or damaged and sometimes they are just abandoned and rusting all over. I awlays want to cut the locks and rehab the bikes or use for parts but dont want to be seen by a cop and be arrested for theft.

Horrible, just horrible :`(. Those poor bikes. What kind of bikes have you seen locked up anyhow?

Most of the time, they are hunks of junk. But I have seen some Trek mtbs, peugots, gary fisher, etc. Nothing super special, but still would be nice if i could get them for free.

Scrap, trash, or police auctions.

The police eventually haul all the bike once or twice a year from the racks. Many of them go straight to the garbage but some eventually go for auction.

I see a Bianchi every day on my way to work, chained to a telephone pole. Never moves. It's been there almost three months now. I wish there was some way to "claim" it. I've thought about putting a note on it "if you don't take this bike within one month, it's MINE!" hehehe Would that be stealing?

NOTE: I would never actually do this.

Vincent

I would. 4 months in the outdoor environment, it's bound to be destoyed by hooligans and messed up. If you put a note on it and let it stay for a month, then I say it's abandoned and belongs to "the citizens."

If it's been a while, and it's winter, I call the police's non-emergency number (311) and they will haul it away. Later on in the spring, the police auction off the abandoned bikes.

Koffee

I really think some of them stay there indefinitely. I remember seeing one particular heap locked up at the university I used to attend. It was there for two years -- and still hadn't been removed when I left.

I just left my health club a few hours ago, and the manager was standing outside at the bike rack with one of the engineers. He had me chuckling- he'd pointed out bikes that had been on the rack all summer, then seemed to hesitate before saying "I guess we'll wait until winter, then cut them off". Made me think of this thread.

Koffee

About a month or two after arriving here in Ireland to live I decided to 'liberate' a saddle that I had seen on an old, presumably abandoned, bike that had been left chained to a lampost. Anyway, I was happily spannering away when I noticed a couple wander up out of the corner of my eye. 'Good evening' they said. Being in a hurry to get the job done I concurred with them, and made some small talk about the weather or something. Only after a couple of minutes did I look to up to see a male and female Gardai (police) standing in front of me. Embarrased wasn't the word, but they actually took my name and address and said they'd let me have the bike if nobody claimed it! You can't beat the Irish attitude to life. :)

Hey I was just in downtown Philly for jury duty at the Federal Building, and remeber thinking how it was strange that all these people seemed to have just left their bikes to rot, chained to all kinds of stuff. There really were a lot of bikes!
(Just thought I'd share :))

i recently got a "takara" bike that was left (unlocked) leaning against a cigarette disposal outside one of our campus's buildings. it had a citation ziptied to it marking it by the city police as "abandoned for more than 48 hours" and subject to impoundment. the citation was more than 4 days old.






everything is stripped from the frame now, and after i spend some quality time at nashbar.com, it will be on it's way to missouri to assist my friend around the washu campus.




it's not exactly on topic because the bike wasn't locked, and you're talking about cutting the U-locks... but it's on the subject.

2 questions:
if I decide to free one of these locked up bikes, and a police officer happens to stroll by, do you think I would get in trouble?

What is the best way to cut a U-lock?

You know, I saw a bike abandoned, and was thinking of cutting the lock and liberating it from its prison. That was for about 2 months, then it was gone. Lock not cut, someone took it back.

Not abandoned, I see.

Check with your local police and get written permission to liberate one of these bikes. That way you don't get accused of bike theft!

indeed...


i still think leaving the note idea is valid.

also, many cities require the owner to register the bike with the police dept. maybe you can copy down the bike registration number and take it to the cops and ask for contact info for the owner?