[sustran] Re: What to do with 900 bikes?

[intlbike at ibike.org]

There are always organizations requesting bicycles.  A partial list is
posted at http://www.ibike.org/environment/recycling/request-bikes.htm.
There has also been some discussion on the practicality and benefits of
starting bicycle programs in Haiti.  For information on organizations with
experience with recycling bicycles visit
http://www.ibike.org/environment/recycling/recycling-orgs.htm

-David

On Wed, 10 Mar 2010 20:43:25 -0500, Carlosfelipe Pardo
<carlosfpardo at gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> I have a practical problem: Bogotá's traffic police have taken away
> bicycles from people not wearing helmets, and getting them back costs
> more than the actual cost of the bike. In consequence, there are a
> couple of yards with some 900 bikes sitting there for the last 10
> years. This week a judge has told a local organization that they are
> willing to "donate them" for a noble cause, but that they must be
> taken from the yards before this Friday. They are getting a warehouse
> to store them at least from Friday and during some weeks, but now the
> questions are:
> - Will they be at all useful (imagine, bikes that have been in the
> open and under rain, sun, etc for up to 10 years...)?
> - If they're not useful as fully-functional bikes, what can they be
> used for? Some people have said they should do a sculpture, do various
> sculptures and do an auction with those sculptures, turn them into
> blocks of scrap metal...
> 
> Now my question to all of you is: what would you do with 900
> used-disfunctional bicycles? (of course, imagine you have very limited
> amounts of money to do something).
> 
> Best regards,
> 
> -- 
> Carlosfelipe Pardo
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