The police patrolling Bodmin on bikes
Published by Sarah Yeoman at 4:49pm 6th November 2018, Pirate FM 102.8
Police are now patrolling the streets of Bodmin... on bikes.
It is thanks to funding from the Police and Crime Commissioner.
Earlier this year, Alison Hernandez made funding available for police officers and staff to improve their ability to engage and connect with communities.
Small grants have been made available to help kick-start innovative ideas to better connect police and communities across Devon and Cornwall.
As part of the scheme the Bodmin neighbourhood team submitted two bids for better IT and electric bikes for more visible patrol.
Used regularly, local PCs and PCSOs have clocked up some impressive mileage on the bikes over a relatively short period of time and they have certainly generated some interest in the town.
Watch them in action below...https://www.piratefm.co.uk/news/latest-news/2730799/watch-the-police-patrolling-bodmin-on-bikes/
"The bikes have been very popular with members of the public and have been a real talking point.
"We have been stopped by people asking questions about them and I have heard so many positive comments about how nice it is to see police on bikes.
"We can cover far more ground on them than when we are out on foot and this has led to some excellent results. One notable incident resulted in the seizure of a vehicle for no insurance which only happened due to being on the bike at the time."
Neighbourhood Beat Manager PC Andy Currie
"While the bikes will never replace cars or vans, they greatly enhance our ability for neighbourhood teams to be more visible, to access more remote communities and improve our engagement with the public.
"We are delighted that the OPCC has been able to fund these bikes and we've already seen really positive results."
Inspector James Honeywill
In addition, the Bodmin policing team also submitted a bid to improve their IT.
With this they have managed to enhance a 'Bodmin Shopwatch' scheme where shopkeepers can have a direct link with each other and the police if an incident occurs in the town.