Over the years on the University of Oregon campus, many people have turned to bicycles as an alternative mode of transport.
In 2012, there were 848 bicycles stolen in Eugene. During the first quarter of 2013, bike thefts in Eugene rose 64 percent.  As of 2015, the bike theft rate has risen, with more than 1,040 bikes reported stolen.
Because of this increase in bike thefts, the University of Oregon Police Department has been in discussion with other departments across campus to develop a long-term solution to reduce thefts on campus. One solution is to increase surveillance around bike lock locations.
There are many places around campus to secure bicycles and the university has a list of all those places available to the community. However, many places are still considered unsafe to securely lock up a bike.
UOPD officer Adam Lillengreen told the Emerald how easy it is for bikes to be stolen on campus.
“Unless you know what you’re looking for, you won’t be able to see them,” Lillengreen said of bike stations hidden behind high bushes and other obstructions.
Some potentially high risk places to park bikes would include the area behind Millrace and the bike racks by Carson hall.
With UOPD understaffed, Lillengreen said that while increased camera surveillance might lower bike thefts, but is a far off prospect.
“We don’t have the budget right now,” Lillengreen stated. “I’m not aware of any plan to implement [increased surveillance].”
Despite this rise in bike thefts, many people still bike on campus.
Mathew Young, a student at UO, chooses to bike rather than drive because of how easy it is to bike around campus.
“The thing that makes driving around campus inconvenient is that there is nowhere to park,” Young said. “You can park your bike anywhere and that makes it so much more convenient.”
“I think the UO makes it easy to lock up your bike anywhere,” Young said. “I feel pretty safe locking it up. I think if [UOPD] were [increasing surveillance] just for bike thefts, then it would be more trouble than it was worth.”
UO and Eugene Police Departments have bike registry databases in place that they encourage people to use in case they ever have a bike stolen. The university bike program offers many opportunities for students to get more information about biking.
Clara Schneid, Operations Coordinator at the UO Bike Program, shared her insight on how to keep bicycles safe from theft.
“I, luckily, have never had any issues with theft,” Schneid said. “I generally only lock up my bike on campus during the daytime.”
Schneid knows that even during the daytime people can have bikes stolen and admits that it is a “huge concern.” Schneid believes that increased surveillance by UOPD has its benefits but ultimately is not the proper solution.
“Based on my gut feeling,” Schneid said, “I think that increased surveillance will deter opportunistic theft, but will not necessarily solve the problem. I think that more preventative measures would benefit the community, such as lighting the places where we lock our bikes and education on how to best lock your bike.”