City of Winnipeg partners with worldwide bicycle registry to help prevent thefts, recover stolen bikes

The City of Winnipeg is backpedalling its old online bicycle registry in favour of a new, free registration system that the mayor says will help prevent bike theft and make it easier to reunite owners with their stolen bikes.

"This new service is user-friendly and effective," Mayor Scott Gillingham said at a news conference at The WRENCH bicycle repair shop on Monday.

"By making cycling a safer and more attractive option, we're paving the way for Winnipeg really to become a leading cycling city."

Winnipeg has officially partnered with 529 Garage, a global, cloud-based bike registration database. Owners can register their bike for free by downloading the app and entering their bike information and contact information.

Cities, law enforcement and bike shops that have partnered with the service can search the database for stolen bikes and contact owners if their bike has been found.

Owners can also create an alert if their bike has been stolen, and search the database to find out whether a bike they're trying to buy is stolen.

"If a bike is stolen in Winnipegand makes its way to say Calgary or Regina for resale, then the bike shop owners in those cities or potential bike purchasers can easily check the information and report it to police," Gillingham told reporters.

Winnipeg's current system, which costs users $7.77 to register their bike, will be shut down by May 1, 2026, a release from the city says. It will no longer accept new registrations as of Wednesday.

Bike owners can also buy a tamper-proof sticker from 529 Garage for about $14 and place it on their bike to deter potential thieves.

Gillingham brought forward a motion last fall for the city to consider implementing the new registry. A city report at the time said it would cost about $50,000.

'It's free, it's quick, it's simple'

Last year, there were more than 1,400 reported bike thefts in Winnipeg, a city spokesperson said in an email. In 2022, more than 1,600 were reported stolen.

Mark Cohoe, the executive director of Bike Winnipeg, says the new registry will improve the odds of stolen bikes getting recovered.

"It's one of the things that holds the city back in terms of getting people out cycling," he said at the news conference.

Coun. Evan Duncan, who chairs the city's community services committee, said the new system is something Winnipeg cyclists have been calling for.

"They want to feel safe, they want their property to be safe, and this is the first step," he said Monday.

"It's important that we send a clear message that bikes just aren't out there to take at your leisure, and there's gonna be some consequences if you're found with a bike that's registered to an owner."

Cyclist Larry Bailliesaid the new registry "sounds fabulous," but Winnipeg police need todedicate officersto work with the system to solve bike thefts.

"If the police don't put dedicated personnel on it, we'd go back to the same problem," he told CBC News.

Baillie's bike was stolen from a bike cage behind the Union Centre on Broadway while he was at work last Thursday. He said the loss was devastating for him, since it was hisonly mode of transportation, and he can't afford to buy another one.

"It was my pride and joy," he said. "I was gutted, absolutely gutted."

Baillie, 65, said he hadn't registered his bike with the city's system, but plans to use the new service to register his stolen bike.

WATCH |Winnipeg mayor announces launch of new bike registration system:

Winnipeg mayor announces launch of new bike registration system

6 months ago

Duration 0:34

Mayor Scott Gillingham says 529 Garage free bike registration service will make it easier to recover stolen bikes.

Duncan said the city will be tracking how well the system does in preventing thefts and how many people register with it.

"[If] we potentially don't see this program being used to its fullness, then we can take other steps through bylaw to make this a requirement to have people register," Duncan said.

Several cities in Canada, including Vancouver and London, Ont., have partnered with 529 Garage, which was founded in Portland, Ore., in 2013.

After it was launched in Vancouver in 2018, bike thefts went down by 30 per cent, city police said at the time.

Gillingham is encouraging all bike owners to sign up right away: "It's free, it's quick, it's simple."

He said Monday's announcement is part of other city initiatives that aim to encourage active transportation such as adding more secure bike storage options downtown something Gillingham said he wouldlike to see more of.