“I just want my bike back!” Singer Hans de Booij (65) from Fijnaart was unpleasantly surprised last weekend when he returned from a performance. To his great dismay, his brand new electric bicycle turned out to have been stolen from the guarded bicycle shed at the station in Roosendaal. Hans is by no means the only victim. This year alone, more than two hundred electric bicycles were stolen from this shed.
Distraught bicycle owners are often the first to report to Simone Bloem from the adjacent bicycle shop. “It has been spiraling out of control since the corona period. I offer people a listening ear, but unfortunately I can’t do anything else for them. You can see that they are often completely out of sorts. They are therefore expensive bicycles.”
For Hans, his electric bicycle was even his only means of transportation. “I have been living in Fijnaart for just two months and I had a fantastic bike that I rode in the area. I can’t forget a ride to Roosendaal, Willemstad or Etten-Leur. I now have a second-hand bicycle without a battery, but that doesn’t get me very far.”
“They leave their old bicycle behind and walk out of the shed with the electric bicycle.”
According to Hans, the thieves are said to choose their victims at the entrance to the stable. “They look at who comes in with an expensive bicycle and then they follow with an old bicycle. Once inside, they cut the locks of the valuable bicycle with a diamond saw. This happens very quickly with today’s battery-powered machines. They leave their old bicycle behind and walk out of the shed with the electric bicycle.”
The bicycle sheds are owned by ProRail and are managed by the NS. ProRail will tackle the guarded bicycle shed in Roosendaal this year, including new racks and better lighting. There will be indicating screens that show you where there is still room. Furthermore, the design is adjusted in such a way that there are no more dumping or hiding places. As far as Simone Bloem is concerned, it is high time: “Because you should keep your paws off other people’s things.”
“We are considering installing sensors that can detect grinding sounds.”
The NS is also working on various measures to make guarded parking facilities more secure. Spokesperson Willemijn Weinands: “You should think of confrontation monitors on which you see yourself when you walk in. This gives thieves the idea that they have been ‘seen’. In addition, the glass entrance gates must be raised so that you can no longer lift a bicycle over them. Finally, consideration is being given to installing sensors that can detect grinding sounds.”
The measures come too late for Hans. “My bike cost 2400 euros. I think the NS should reimburse that. After all, I paid to put my bike in a secure garage. It was locked with an extra chain around it. Then you should be able to assume that your bicycle is safe, but not so. I also heard that the cameras aren’t even on because no one is looking at them anyway. It’s just worthless, I’ve lost my property.”
NS spokesperson Willemijn Weinands cannot say whether Hans will get his bicycle back. “That depends on various factors. We look at this on a case-by-case basis.”
