While it may be a New Year, old problems still plague UCA students, specifically bike thefts. Three bikes have been reported missing to UCAPD since Jan. 10, 2024, and 17 bikes were reportedly stolen from Aug. 12, 2023, to Jan. 12, 2024.

Sophomore Makenzie Miller has grown increasingly weary of the safety of her bike, going as far as double-locking her bike.

“We’ve had several bikes stolen from Farris, and sometimes the fear of having yours stolen almost outweighs the satisfaction of having it here in the first place. I haven’t used my bike since before break, due to the weather and things, but before break, I put two combination locks on it, just in case,” Miller said.

UCAPD Sgt. Michael Hopper suggested keeping bikes locked up with a U-lock at designated UCA bike racks.

“On campus, I would say that using a quality lock and always locking the bicycle is the best prevention,” he said.

He said cyclists should write down their bike’s serial number in case it’s stolen.

“These numbers are usually located on the bottom of the bottom bracket, where the pedals attach to the bicycle. That serial number can help law enforcement locate the bicycle if it is sold to a bike shop or pawn shop,” Hopper said.

Students have concerns about the security of bike racks, and the lack of cameras surrounding them, specifically the Farris Hall bike racks.

“Having cameras just for bike racks would be helpful because it took way too long to find footage from a cam that only captured the bike racks from a distance, but mostly, if you want to prevent it from happening, make sure to get a U-lock and not a cable,” freshman Kira Rich said.

Freshman Connor Dow said he experienced the same struggles when reporting his bike stolen. 

He said that even though there was footage of his bike being stolen from one of the Farris Hall bike racks on Dec. 6, 2023, he felt like UCAPD did not investigate enough.

Dow said, “They didn’t do anything beyond filing a basic report about when the crime took place and the vague features of the suspects they could make out. Slightly infuriating is the fact that numerous cameras were installed inside of Farris over winter break but none on the outside to get a better angle on the bike racks, which might have assisted with the problem. There seems to be either a lack of awareness or simply a lack of effort regarding this problem within the police department.”

Dow is not the only student concerned about camera surveillance near bike racks.

Freshman Taryn Wells, who also had her bicycle stolen from the Farris Hall bike racks on Oct. 25, 2023, said she asked UCAPD about installing cameras, only to be told that there was no room in the budget for them at the time. 

“I think UCAPD could definitely make more of an effort with the security around bikes. I thought it was interesting how they said there wasn’t enough budget left to add cameras closer to the Farris racks, but then put two cameras inside every entrance to the building.

“I just wonder what their reasoning was, and what may have happened inside Farris that would prompt them to put cameras inside rather than by the bike racks,” Wells said.

Sophomore Kyle Urban said cameras may not even be the right solution.

“I don’t trust the bike racks. But I do trust my bike lock. It is a thick horseshoe lock that requires a key, rather than one of those wimpy string locks. UCAPD and cameras would be impractical [in theft prevention]. It Is better to put a GPS tracker on your bike and turn that data over to PD when it gets stolen,” Urban said.

The new cameras installed in Farris Hall and New Hall were previously planned and were just installed over break.

“There have always been cameras in those halls, but some additional cameras were added.” Hopper said.

Hopper also said while UCAPD is involved in the placement of the cameras, they are budgeted through housing.

“As I understand it, they [cameras] are budgeted through Housing.  There have been cameras covering the bike racks in that area for quite a while and have helped with the investigation of some of the thefts… The PD is involved in the placement of cameras around campus.”