Midland Police Department has announced that its officers will begin utilizing electric bicycles (e-bikes) in what they calling the “Bike Unit.” The e-bikes will serve as vehicles to assist with additional mobility and security for officers.
“This helps the city be a lot safer and a lot more secure because it allows us to do things that we wouldn’t otherwise be able to do,” said Chane Blandford, an MPD officer, in a promotional video on the city of Midland’s social media pages. “On foot, you can only move so fast; on a bike, you can move twice that speed, if not three times that speed. And a car is too big; they can’t go places a bike can go.”
E-bikes are bicycles with a built-in electric motor, which grants the rider a propulsion boost of up to 28 mph total, though the they will still need to pedal. The use and functionality of e-bikes has increased continuously over the years, particularly in urban areas.
As described in the video, the e-bikes are intended by MPD partly to be a further deterrent against vehicle burglaries. They will also be used for patrolling high-population areas and events such as Midland’s holiday season. MPD says that they are currently training MPD officers on the e-bikes and hope to roll out the Bike Unit later this year.
