Bus systems collect hundreds of bikes left behind

COLUMBUS (AP) — Transit systems with bike racks on their buses say absent-minded bicyclists get off the bus and leave behind hundreds of their two-wheeled vehicles.

The Central Ohio Transit Authority in Columbus says 400 bikes have been forgotten in the five years since the agency began installing the racks on the fronts of its buses. About three-quarters of the orphaned bicycles were never claimed.

The transit authority throws away the ones in the worst shape and sells others through online auctions. But a spokesman says the most recent auction, in March, netted a total of just $169 for 21 bikes.

A law in Seattle requires King County Metro Transit to donate its left-behind bikes to charity. A spokeswoman says about 400 bicycles left in bus racks go unclaimed ever year.