BICYCLES abandoned at York Railway Station are to be given a new lease of life, refurbished and sold on to new owners – unless their owners claim them by the end of the month.

About 50 bikes have been left chained up to the station’s cycle racks for several months with no-one moving them or collecting them.

Now station operator National Express East Coast, working with British Transport Police, has put up posters nearby and attached tags to the affected bikes informing people the machines will be removed after September 30.

The idea is to provide more room for cyclists who want to park their bikes at the station when commuting and also to give non-cyclists the chance to buy a cheap bike.

The unclaimed bikes are to be given to York non-profit recycling organisation the Bike Rescue Project. Volunteers and mechanics will repair them and either sell or donate the bikes to good causes. Any that are beyond repair will be stripped for spare parts.

Those that are sold will start at £50 in price, will be fully overhauled and will come with a three-month guarantee.

Duty station manager Paola Vitolo said: “Although we have space for more than 300 bikes at the station, we have been concerned other users may struggle to find somewhere to secure their bike because of all these extra forgotten cycles. Regular users will be delighted we are now working with this fantastic cause so the bikes are recycled back into the community.”

Bernie Cullen, project manager at the Bike Rescue Project, said: “It is very timely to do something about these unwanted bikes just now because we see a leap in demand for reconditioned bikes from university students returning to York after the summer holidays. It is great that we can give them a new lease of life and pass them on to someone who will appreciate them.”

The Bike Rescue Project can be contacted on 01904 733789. Or visit www.yorkrecycling.net