SPD launches new bike recovery effort

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The Seattle Police Department today launched a new effort to get recovered bikes back to their rightful owners using Twitter. The  new Twitter feed,@GetYourBikeBack, will serve as a point of contact for bike owners and detectives alike.

Right now, SPD has approximately 500 “found” bikes in storage. These bikes were abandoned somewhere in the city and later recovered by officers, and SPD would happily reunite you with your lost or stolen bike.  Starting today, SPD will be tweeting general descriptions about the most recently “found” bikes, hoping people will respond and claim their bikes.

If you see your bike listed, send an email to  FindMyBike@Seattle.Gov with your contact information,  your case number if you reported the bike stolen and the bike’s bike's serial number.

Don’t have your bike serial number? You can still claim your bikes using a sales receipt for the bike, a picture of your bicycle (better yet, of you riding the bike) or a vivid description of the bike, including details about pedals, stickers, scratches, dents or any other unique traits your bike might have.

While the program is a work-in-progress, SPD hopes the Twitter feed well help them identify the owners of unreported stolen bikes. Jonah Spangenthal-Lee from SPD's Public Affairs United said they're also hoping to encourage more bike owners to write down their bike serial numbers.

TIP: Take a close-up picture of your bike’s serial number, along with a few additional pics of your bike.  Send the pictures to your email account or save them somewhere you can easily retrieve them if needed. It will only take a minute, so do it right now. You'll be glad you did!

If the Found Property detectives are unable to find a bike's owner, the bikes still go to a good cause, and are often donated to several non-profits like the South Shore Middle School after School Bike Repair Program, Earthcore, Lions Club and Alffia.

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