Bikes at the 4th & Washington parking garage sport fuchsia notices warning of possible impoundment on Feb. 5, 2009.

Bright fuchsia cards printed with the Ann Arbor Police Department seal have been threaded through the spokes of the wheels on nine bicycles locked to the hoops at the 4th & Washington parking structure. The cards weren’t placed there as decoration, but as a warning: these bicycles face possible impoundment starting Feb. 5.

What’s the problem with people locking their bikes to the hoops provided for exactly that purpose? As the notices say, “Your bicycle may be impounded as provided by city ordinance when it has remained unattended on public property for a period of more than 48 hours after a written notice has been affixed to the bicycle.” The notices reflected that they were written on Feb. 3 and indicated a possible impoundment date of Feb. 5.

The Chronicle has noticed the same collection of bicycles locked at these hoops since visiting the location to report on innovation in parking information data. The city’s applicable code reads:

10:174. Impounding of vehicles.
Members of the Police Department are hereby authorized to remove bicycles from a public place to the City bicycle pound or other place of safety, under the circumstances hereinafter enumerated.
(1) When any bicycle is reasonably believed to be stolen.
(2) When any bicycle has been left unattended upon any public street, alley, or sidewalk continuously for a period of 48 hours, or when any bicycle is left in such a manner as to obstruct unreasonably the flow of vehicular or pedestrian traffic on any public street, alley, or sidewalk.
(3) When the operator of a bicycle is detained because of a traffic violation and refuses to give his or her name and address.
(Ord. No. 46-61, 8-14-61; Ord. No. 26-74, 8-19-74)

10:175. Notice.
When a bicycle is impounded under the provisions of this section and the Police Department knows or is able to ascertain the owner thereof the Police Department shall, within a reasonable period of time, give and cause to be given a notice in writing to such owner of the fact of impoundment and reasons therefor.

The notices also indicate that the bicycles are unregistered. While the city  has an ordinance requiring registration of bicycles, writing on the WBWC GoogleGroup last summer (2008), Kris Talley, president of the Washtenaw Bicycling and Walking Coalition, reported that the consensus at the city’s alternative transportation meetings was that ”the current system is not very functional, and at one point there seemed to be some movement towards getting rid of it altogether. But as that would require some level of ordinance changing that no one was willing to tackle (as I recall), I believe the thought is now to at least make the transaction more meaningful by giving cyclists useful information (like about safety and rules of the road) when they register.”

The bicycles to which the bright fuchsia notices have been attached are locked at the hoop directly adjacent to bike lockers administered through getDowndown, which can be used for long-term storage. However, except for one location (at Maynard Street across from the parking structure), the getDowntown website currently indicates that all of its bike lockers are full.