Worried about your bike getting stolen? Register it with Project 529
Port Moody police will be at the farmers market at the Port Moody Rec Centre to register bikes
Registering your bike with Project 529 can both deter theft and make it easier to recover.
Port Moody police will be at the Port Moody Farmer’s Market on Wednesday from 3 to 7 p.m., registering bikes with the free network that spans hundreds of communities and is widely used in the Lower Mainland.
The system works by applying a unique decal to a bike, different from its serial number, and adding specific bike details that a bike owner might otherwise forget into the 529 Garage app, said Const. Sam Zacharias, the media relations officer with Port Moody police, in an email to the Dispatch.
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“Within the Port Moody context, the program has had some great success in reuniting found and seized bikes to their owners — bikes we likely would not have been able to return through conventional means,” he said.
If someone’s bike goes missing, they can send out an alert to all Project 529 users. People can also look up a bike when shopping for a used one to ensure they aren’t inadvertently purchasing a stolen bicycle.
If the Port Moody police use a bike serial number to search police databases for a stolen bike, they often have to use the full and exact number. Project 529, however, allows partial and other details, said Const. Zacharias.
The program has seen success in places known for bike theft, like Vancouver, where the number of stolen bikes has declined by 70 per cent since the city started the program in 2015.
Const. Zacharias also recommended that bike owners use a heavy-duty lock.
