CYCLISTS have demanded more bike racks after a striking spike in thefts saw figures inflate to their highest in five years.

Thousands of bikes were targeted by thieves in the county last year as figures jumped by 362 thefts in a year.

An Oxford Mail freedom of information request to Thames Valley Police revealed 2,606 bicycles were reported stolen across Oxfordshire in 2017.

A total of 544 bicycles were stolen in the OX1 area of central Oxford alone – almost 200 more than the 349 stolen in 2016. Oxfordshire County Council cycling champion Suzanne Bartington called for urgent action.

She said: “These statistics are striking and we know many cyclists are affected by theft in the city centre, where on average there are two cycles per home.

“We urgently need Oxford City Council and Oxfordshire County Council to work together to deliver more cycle parking and storage facilities in residential areas, city and town centres and transport hubs.

“This will help reduce the number of bikes attached to railings and lampposts where they are targets.

Central Oxford proved the worst hit area last year, taking over from East Oxford which has had the highest number of thefts for several years previously.

East Oxford’s OX4 was second worst in 2017 with 537 thefts – down 66 from 2016.

Oxford cycling group Cyclox chairman Simon Hunt said: “The figures do seem an uncomfortably high figure, which of course one wishes doesn’t happen.

“It would be helpful if there were more cycle stands to lock bikes up to. A lot of people ‘flypark’ as there are not enough stands, but that is a complaint we have made to the council for years.”

The problem is not contained to the city, as figures show several areas across the county also experienced a rise in thefts from last year.

In Abingdon’s OX14 area, figures jumped from 58 bicycle thefts last year to 80 in 2017 and Didcot’s OX11 area saw a bigger leap from 145 thefts in 2016 to 239 reports last year.

Bicester’s OX26 area also showed figures surge to 121 bicycles stolen last year – almost twice the number from 2016.

Sergeant Pete Neale of Oxford Central team said: “The issue of bicycle thefts in Oxford is a general problem and there are no hotspot areas, which makes it hard to prevent via patrol.

“The key element of tackling cycle crime is prevention. The message we want to give to cyclists is to ensure their bicycles have the best security measures possible.

“We advise them to get bicycles marked with a postcode and talk to specialists about suitable locks for them.

“We will be carrying out a joint initiative with Oxford University later this year aimed improving bicycle security and preventing thefts, as well as the issue of safety of cyclists themselves.

“This will include bicycle marking and other measures.”

City Council spokesman Tony Ecclestone insisted that while the city was responsible for installing bike racks, the county council was in charge of providing them.