For cyclists, getting to a destination is only half the battle. Finding somewhere safe to leave a bike can be just as important, particularly as bike theft continues to be a concern across Waterloo Region. Some form of bike lockers have been available in Waterloo for about 12 years. But growing demand has led the city to introduce its rent-secure bike parking program. “Prior to installing these lockers, we had a waitlist,” said Louise Finlay, Waterloo’s active transportation project manager. The city now has 14 secure bike parking spots across Waterloo. Users may rent a locker for a minimum of four months at a cost of $15 per month, plus a $30 security deposit. To access a locker, users scan a QR code, provide their deposit and receive a key. Finlay said the service can be useful for a variety of cyclists. “It could be an office worker. It could be someone who doesn’t have secure bike parking at their home,” she said. The need for secure parking is underscored by Waterloo Regional Police data, showing more than 5,400 bikes were reported stolen across the region between 2019 and 2024. Only 432 of those bikes were recovered. Police officers have gotten help with recovery through Project 529, a digital bicycle registration and recovery system designed to help prevent bike theft and reunite stolen bikes with their owners. Retired Vancouver police officer Rob Brunt, a Project 529 outreach officer who helped the Waterloo Regional Police Service adopt the system, said secure bike parking can still present challenges. He said a thief could enter a secure facility on a cheap bike, steal a more expensive one and leave the original behind. “The thief comes in, he’s riding a $50 bike and he’s going to come in and steal another bike, leave his $50 bike and take somebody’s $200, $300, $2,000, $4,000, $10,000 bike,” Brunt said. Brunt said the risk increases when thieves have the tools needed to break into a facility, particularly when large numbers of bicycles are stored together. He said individual lockers can offer more protection than larger bike cages, but believes the most effective option is supervised bike parking. Brunt pointed to bike valet services at some shopping centres and other locations, where cyclists check in their bikes using identification and staff monitor the bikes while they are parked. “You bring your bicycle, check it in with ID and they check that bike with you,” Brunt said. Despite his concerns, Brunt said he appreciates municipalities such as Waterloo providing cyclists with more places to safely park their bikes. But as bike theft continues to be an issue, he said finding better ways to protect bicycles remains an ongoing challenge.
