With a new bicycle rack design, a bicycle labelling system and new signage to raise awareness, the Singapore Police Force and National Crime Prevention Council hope to tackle the theft of bicycles.http://www.channelnewsasia.com/image/1489124/1416721239000/large16x9/768/432/bicycle-lock.jpg SINGAPORE: Three key Anti-Bicycle Theft Initiatives were announced by the Singapore Police Force (SPF) and the National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC) on Sunday (Nov 23). The first initiative is a pilot of a new bicycle rack design, named Lock Lah, which improves on the security of old racks without high costs and space requirements. Launched on Nov 7 at nine locations across the island (such as Velocity mall, Teck Whye Lane and parts of Hougang), it impedes access to the front wheel of the bicycle, while offering additional loops to secure the frame and back wheels with a cable lock. In coming up with the prototype design, the rack's designers - a trio of Indonesian international students - studied various bicycle shapes from around the world, and eventually won a competition organised by the SPF and the NCPC organised from February to July last year. The second initiative is an enhanced bicycle labelling system. In partnership with bicycle online classifieds and forum Togoparts, the SPF now offers each bicycle owner a label with a unique serial number for each bicycle owned. With this number, owners can then provide information about the particular bike online such as its model, features and colours, as well as submit photos. They can also specify if the bicycle is currently in their possession, lost, stolen or found. http://www.channelnewsasia.com/blob/1489128/1416721222000/bicycle-register-data.jpg Finally, new anti-theft bicycle signage will be posted near bicycle racks across the island to increase awareness of bicycle theft. About 7,000 of such signage has already been posted, with more to be rolled out in phases. These measures are part of a continuous effort to tackle theft of bicycles. Though figures have fallen since last year - 588 cases were reported for the period of January to June this year, compared to 630 for the same period in 2013 - the Police say such theft remains a major concern.
