Abandoned bicycles chained with a U-Lock outside the Reitz Union and Rawlings Hall faced their biggest enemy on Wednesday: a blow torch.
For the second time this year, the UF Police Department came together with UF Transportation and Parking Services and UF Surplus to remove the abandoned bicycles. The bikes will be auctioned off toward the end of June.
About 300 bicycles were rounded up, UPD Capt. Jeff Holcomb said. The numbers were similar the last time they rounded up abandoned bikes in February.
This year, UPD focused on reminding students to figure out what to do with their bicycles, Holcomb said. The message was relayed through housing two weeks before the Summer semester, he added.
Typically, the department tags all bicycles on campus with a notice directing students to remove the notice if the bicycle isn’t abandoned.
“If the tags are gone, we leave the bike in place,” Holcomb said.
But if the tags are still in place after a few weeks, UPD spends about a day or two rounding up abandoned bicycles with two dump trucks.
Students then have about 30 days to claim their bicycle if they can prove ownership, Holcomb said. If the bicycles aren’t claimed, they are auctioned off.
Ron Fuller, the assistant director for transportation and parking, said the two different bicycle removals determine if the bicycle will be recycled or auctioned.
Bicycles in good condition that pass the 3/5 rule — three or more components consisting of the two wheels, handlebar, seat and frame must be present — are auctioned off, Fuller said.
Junk bicycles, ones missing more than three parts, are recycled after 45 days in storage, he added.
“We look at this as a necessary thing,” he said.
Rusting frames are a trip hazard and can leave a bad impression on the space they occupy, he said.
David Dykes, senior property manager at UF Surplus, said they’ve hosted online auctions at surplus.ufl.edu since 2004.
Seven bicycles are sold per lot, Dykes said. Prices start at $40 per lot and go from there.
If a person bids and wins a lot, they take home all seven bicycles, Holcomb said.
“Good or bad, you own them if you buy them,” Holcomb said. He suggested students register their bicycles to receive notification if their bicycle is accidentally picked up.
A UF employee removes a lock from an abandoned bicycle using a blowtorch outside Rawlings Hall.
