NCJ Number
214600
Journal
Law and Order Volume: 54 Issue: 4 Dated: April 2006 Pages: 79-82
Date Published
April 2006
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article discusses training and policy for bike patrol as well as their connection to liability issues for a police department.
Abstract
Bicycle patrol officers have a number of advantages over cruiser patrol. They have quiet mobility in areas inaccessible to cruisers, and they serve the interests of community policing better than officers in cars. Officers patrolling a neighborhood on bikes are accessible to residents for conversations and providing information about problems and crimes in the neighborhood. The effectiveness of bike patrols in realizing their potential benefits, however, depends on effective training and policy development. Knowing how to pedal a bike is not sufficient to send an officer out on bike patrol, just as knowing how to drive a car does not qualify an officer to serve on cruiser patrol. Officers must be trained in riding and using the gears effectively for the type of bike used in police work. They must also be trained to ride in places and under conditions such as rough terrain, down steps, rain, heavy traffic, and low light. They must be trained in bike pursuit of a fleeing suspect and how to draw and fire their sidearm while dismounting and wearing bicycle gloves. Safety procedures distinctive to bike patrol must also be taught. Proper training not only requires an initial formal basic training course but also ongoing inservice training. In addition to training, a written bike patrol policy is necessary. The policy should cover all aspects of bike patrol. The policy should provide guidelines for the on-duty operation of police bicycles. This includes who is authorized to ride a bike, the type of training required, how bikes are to be used in policing, equipment and uniforms, safety requirements, and specifications for bikes and equipment.