A few months to a few days. And they leave notices on the bikes before taking them anyway. But the point is, a pole is my least favorite option to lock my bike. It’s dead last in the list of choices.

It’s an “illegal” last resort that means there’s no bike racks near my destination, or they are all full. So just like the meme says, I’m at the stage where if I can’t securely park and lock my bike somewhere, I’ll turn around or won’t go. If there’s space for an ocean of parking for cars, there’s space for a bike rack somewhere.