Do we care about bicycles that have been dumped?

Estimated read time 3 min read

Thousands of motorcycles are thrown into waterways worldwide each year. There is no exception to this rule when it comes to the Saint-Hei-Martin Canal, which drains Paris. The stream, which is about 5 km long and was built to keep Paris clean, has frequently served different purposes over the course of its two-hundred-year existence. Poor drainage is a problem because it is, regrettably, a dumping site. Here’s a summary  of what’s going on.

What happened after the Canal was drained?

It was found to be a sizable liquid trash container. Large crowds gathered on the footbridge in 2016 to watch the cleaners walk through the dirt and clear the trash.

Mattresses, suitcases, traffic cones, and road signs were all out in the open, along with a table and chairs, a bathtub, a toilet, a vintage radio, and a computer. The situation was pitiful to behold, and there was a lot of trash. Although many vehicles were pulled from the swamps, they were not designed to float. There were plenty of mopeds, strollers, shopping carts, at least one wheelchair.

However, after midnight, it develops a vintage brooding atmosphere that has been the backdrop for noir films and detective stories.

Is there a backstory to these bikes?

The Vélib bike-sharing programme was introduced in Paris in 2007 and features 14,500 rental bikes that are distributed throughout the city. Hundreds of Velib ship skeletons could be seen partially buried in the canal floor mud after the water was drained. Additionally, there were numerous other bikes of different makes and years, some of which appeared to have been damaged before being delivered to a shadowy grave.

It is plausible to assume that most of the bicycles on Canal Saint-Martin did not plunge into the water in tragic events or accidents. People who engage in casual hooliganism find bicycles to be a desirable target. You might suppress your desire to cause harm to sentient beings by throwing away any non-sentient objects you come across. 

Due to the growth of sharing programmes like Vélib, an increasing number of bikes are now available for public use in cities all over the world. Throwing a bike into the ocean is a niche sport with its own set of rewards. Social media videos also depict pranksters rolling bikes across lakes, launching them over dock railings, and hurling them into rapids.

What exactly occurs when bicycles are put to death?

Although bicycles are sustaining items, they are also temporary. If you don’t mind being a little antisocial, it’s simple to get rid of. In affluent developed nations, bicycles are inexpensive to purchase. When a bike breaks down or a new one is bought, the owner frequently discards the old one and leaves it outside, where it is frequently taken by onlookers or swept into the trash collection area. Then there are the abandoned bikes that have accumulated damage over time and the other elements those  are getting worse and worse.

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