‘Someone stole my BBC bike in Amsterdam – it is like dropping a pal’

I used to be planning an bizarre afternoon out – baggage packed, able to roll – once I bounded downstairs and was hit by a jolt of disbelief.

The area the place my cargo bike ought to have been was empty, and the double lock that had bolted it to my Amsterdam condominium wall was hacked.

My daughter darted between the opposite bikes, satisfied somebody will need to have moved it, however no, it was gone.

With biking deeply embedded in day by day life right here within the Netherlands – a part of the “Dutch DNA”, as we are saying – I’ve no automotive, so used my bike for every thing, from the varsity run to a buying journey.

This was no bizarre bicycle. My colleague Kate Vandy and I retrofitted it to change into a cell broadcasting studio, which we named the Bike Bureau. I began “Dutch News from the Cycle Path”, a reporting collection born on the varsity run after my daughter requested me: “Why do not you simply inform individuals the information now?”

The bike allowed me to succeed in breaking information scenes and broadcast reside from wherever, my daughter by my aspect, displaying that working motherhood might be seen, joyful and actual.

It opened doorways to collaborations, awards and a group of people that noticed themselves in our story.

I’ve zero expectation of getting the bike again, and trying to find it has confirmed fruitless. I known as the police instantly and so they opened a case, however closed it shortly afterwards due to a scarcity of proof that will assist discover the thief.

People on-line and in my local people have rallied spherical to attempt to discover it since I put out an enchantment. Neighbours requested if I used to be okay, telling me they cherished to see me take pleasure in their bike lanes and see their metropolis from my foreigner’s perspective.

But why, my daughter requested, achieve this many individuals care that our bike was stolen?

Colleagues and pals responded to my Instagram Reel in regards to the theft. Legendary BBC camerawoman Julie Ritson known as my bike a blueprint for the way forward for journalism. Others mentioned it was a relatable life-hack that confirmed how one individual can handle motherhood and profession, and impressed them to rethink what’s potential with a cargo bike.

It was solar-powered, chopping the necessity for satellite tv for pc vehicles with heavy gear and the air pollution that mode of transport brings.

Research final yr from the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism exhibits audiences aren’t solely inquisitive about local weather change information – they’re notably engaged by tales that spotlight people taking empowering motion in response to the disaster.

Some individuals have expressed shock that “this type of factor” would occur within the Netherlands. What they could not realise is that bike theft is endemic right here. Last yr, greater than 86,000 bikes have been reported stolen within the Netherlands, up 1,000 in comparison with the yr earlier than, and 10,000 greater than in 2022, in accordance with police figures. Authorities say an increase in reviews might have contributed to this.

Most bikes stolen are stripped for elements or bought on. My e-cargo bike value practically €5,000 (£4,200) – greater than our outdated automotive which I bought.

I paid for the bike, so the BBC has undergone no monetary loss.

What it actually purchased me was independence – and in a manner, dropping it’s like dropping a pal. Aside from the affect by myself life-style, that bike gave my daughter a magical, nature-filled childhood: picnics within the dunes, detours to see highland cows, fairy lights in winter, breezy rides to the seaside in summer time.

The theft has sparked conversations about city security, biking infrastructure, and the burdens moms nonetheless carry. But it is also a testomony to the group we have constructed and the facility of sharing genuine tales from the saddle.

I won’t get my bike again, however nobody can steal what it gave us all.