Bicycle Registries
Program Title:
Bicycle Registries
Program Blurb:
As large numbers of bicycles are stolen annually across the globe, government and independent databases have been established to reduce and prevent the prevalence of bike theft. These bike registries are free or may charge a nominal fee for storing unique information on bicycles such as manufacturer-provided serial numbers as well as ownership information. In some cases, the registries also create alerts after a bike has been stolen.
The purpose of bike registries is essentially to provide an element of security to the owners, as well as to create deterrence and a method of recovery in the case of theft. Even when bikes are recovered, police agencies are unable to trace the owners due to the absence of ownership information. Bike registries are therefore considered useful for locating the rightful owners of recovered bikes.
Is the program based on research?
N
There is no evidence that this program is based on research.
Has the program been independently evaluated?
N
There has been no attempt to date, to independently evaluate the bike registry programs.
Was the program rigorously tested?
N
No such information is available.
Has the program evaluation been replicated?
N
We could not find any published, peer-reviewed studies to evaluate the effectiveness of the program.
Was the program tested in Canada?
N
While a number of police agencies across Canada have adopted the program, it has never been empirically tested in Canada.
Comments/Cautions:
We are unable to confirm whether the bike registry program is effective in preventing bike thefts or the return of stolen bikes to their owners, as the program has not been independently evaluated.
Assessor: Dr. Hina Kalyal, University of Western Ontario
Hina Kalyal has recently completed her second Ph.D. with a focus on evidence-based policing practices under Prof. Laura Huey’s supervision at UWO. Hina also holds a Ph.D. in Business Administration from the National University of Sciences and Technology, Pakistan. She has served as an Assistant Professor of Management and Organizational Behavior in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia and has worked at the Dept of Criminology, George Mason University as a Fulbright Postdoctoral Scholar from 2012-13.
Reviewer: Dr. Bryan Kinney, Simon Fraser University
Dr. Bryan Kinney is an Associate Professor of Criminology at Simon Fraser with expertise in crime prevention and crime reduction, geographical criminology, policing studies and environmental criminology. He is also the Assistant Director of the Institute for Canadian Urban Research Studies (ICURS) and the Associate Director of Graduate Programs at SFU's School of Criminology.
