The City of Pittsburg, Kan., has re-energized its bike patrol unit with more structure, appointed bike patrol officers, and six new mountain bikes. The unit will provide proactive, community-based policing efforts.

“One of the benefits of a bike patrol is community engagement,” Interim Chief of Police Brent Narges said. “Citizens are much more likely to interact with police officers on bikes than officers driving patrol vehicles.”

The officers are currently on special assignment patrolling parks within the city, but the department also plans to deploy the team periodically to assist in property crime detection, and to patrol crime in case-specific regions of the city.

Narges said this new unit will also add a layer of security and offer tactical advantages to officers that are not possible with patrol cars, such as maneuvering through terrain inaccessible to cars.

Funding for the patrol unit revamp came from a public safety sales tax.

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