Preventing Auto Theft in Suburban Vancouver Commuter Lots: Effects of a Bike Patrol (From Preventing Mass Transit Crime, P 133-161, 1996, Ronald V. Clarke, ed. - See NCJ-168781)

• NCJ Number: 168785
• Author(s): P Barclay; J Buckley; P J Brantingham; P L Brantingham; T Whinn-Yates
• Date Published: 1996
• Length: 29 pages
• Sale Source: Criminal Justice Press/Willow Tree Press
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

The impact of a bicycle patrol to improve security at a commuter vehicle parking lot at a mass transit station in suburban Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada was examined.

Abstract

The parking lot was operated by BC Transit for its Scott Road SkyTrain station, which was considered a hotspot for vehicle thefts. The bicycle patrol was introduced in April 1995 following a media campaign that resulted in extensive coverage in local and regional newspapers. The test project lasted a month. Four security guards dressed in bright yellow jackets and other gear similar to that worn by police bicycle patrol officers patrolled in pairs and in irregular patterns from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. An analysis of vehicle theft data before and after the introduction of the patrol revealed that vehicle thefts declined substantially during the bicycle patrol and remained low for an extended period of time after the bicycle patrol was withdrawn. In addition, vehicle thefts did not appear to displace to adjacent areas or to another nearby hotspot on the transit system. Some vehicle thefts may have been displaced to a more distant hotspot, but the overall result for the city as a whole was a small net reduction in vehicle thefts. Figures, tables, appended methodological information and additional results, and 38 references (Author abstract modified)