Bicycle-Mounted police officer on H Street NE

Photo by Jeff L

Comments

[charlie]

I've been meaning to ask this for a long time.

Do cycling advocates have a view on cops on bikes? Do they makes the cops more aware of cycling accidents and rights?

Also, is there any data on cops on bikes and injuries. I'm really tired of seeing fat cops idling their cars all days to take advantage of AC.

I've noticed DC has some guys on segways for parking enforcement, but couldn't you get a few of them on bikes as well?

[Read Scott Martin]

There are more than a few MPD police on mountain bikes. Seen in a group over the weekend in the triangle park near the Harris Teeter and Potomac Gardens. Seen last week a lone officer on Bladensburg Road (!) sidewalk north of New York Avenue heading to the District line. Their slow speed makes them more visible and ideal deterrents, especially for places like allies and pocket parks in N.E.

[Shawn]

I support cops on bikes. Especially the bike gang in Capitol Hill (my name for the pack of 5 cops that ride together...one of those guys is ripped). I got punched on my way to the metro by a guy who was muttering to himself and called the cops. They showed up in 2 minutes, asked which way he went and started canvasing the neighborhood looking for him. They found him at the foot of the Pennsylvania Ave. SE bridge to Anacostia 10 minutes later (this guy walked quickly, I thought) and had the cuffs on him and asked me to identify him (it was the same guy, I remembered the logo on the back of his shirt). They were cool the whole time, and effective, and I think being on bikes lets them see things they can't see in a car with tinted car windows and a reclining seat.

[Greenbelt]

I was happy to see this officer on a bike because I believe she was working parking enforcement. Much better from a bike than from those little white cars that block the bike lanes!

[oboe]

Do cycling advocates have a view on cops on bikes? Do they makes the cops more aware of cycling accidents and rights?

Big fan of bike cops. They are more visible, more engaged with the community, similar to foot officers, but can cover more ground. Plus it's much healthier for the officers. One last thing, they can demonstrate to area drivers that cyclists are entitled to use the road--it legitimizes cycling.

Saw a couple of officers riding east on Missouri Avenue just before the intersection with N Capitol & Riggs Road. In the street, wonder of wonders.

Good stuff.

[David R.]

Appreciate bike officers as a community policing tactic (is that still a current term?). I do wonder, though, why they're almost always on the sidewalk, at least in my experience. That can't be helpful for cycling education, either for riders or for the motoring public.

[Richard Layman]

bike-based cops tend to be beat related, while traffic enforcement division people are the ones who end up doing enforcement, accident investigation, etc. Not sure if there is much overlap.

[oboe]

@Richard L

Right, but my guess is that if you drove past a bike cop, skimming him with your right-hand mirror, and he caught up with you at the next light, there's probably a pretty good chance he'd find time to make an exception.

:)