IPMBA News

New Bike Patrol Allows Aurora Police to be More Accessible, Chief Says

by MIKE LESKO, Aurora Advocate, July 15, 2015

Aurora OH -- After it hadn't been used much in recent years, the local police department has revived its bike patrol program this summer at the recommendation of Chief Brian Byard.

The bike patrol has been used only sparingly in the last 10 years or so, especially after the closing of Geauga Lake Amusement Park, but has typically been in use during the city's bicycle rodeo and at Halloween.

The bike patrol includes eight officers, along with four new bicycles. This addition increases the total number of certified bike officers in the department to 14, with a total of six bikes.

To become certified, officers attend a police mountain bike school that is usually about 40 hours, according to Lt. Rob Hagquist. It teaches them things such as how to maintain their bicycles and about riding over curbs and down steps.

Hitches were added to the newest police vehicles, allowing officers to place a bicycle on a rack. As they patrol in cruisers, they have the bike available at any time if they choose to begin riding it.

"Officers may ride from the police station or drive somewhere in town and transition to the bike at their convenience or when necessary," Byard explained.

"Ideally, officers always would stay within a few miles of their vehicles should they need to quickly respond to another area of the city."

Byard said being on bikes makes officers more accessible to the public and allows officers to travel through neighborhoods looking for suspicious activity during the daytime and especially in the middle of the night.

Recently during the city's July 4 festivities, four bike officers were able to patrol the area utilizing bicycles, "making it much easier to navigate through heavy traffic and large crowds," Byard said.

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