Warren PD Deploys Four RECON E-Bikes
The most visible piece of the City of Warren Police Department’s bicycle presence is probably the Fourth of July parade.
But the capacity serves both law enforcement and community relations objectives.
And a donation by Seneca Generation LLC – four new e-bikes, emergency lights included – will further increase those capabilities.
City of Warren Police Captain Jeff Dougherty said the department’s current fleet of bicycles was in excess of 20 years old and in need of replacement.
The city, he explained, has used bikes for bicycle-specific programming, initiatives in schools as well as normal patrol shifts.
“Night time is a great time to use bikes,” he said. “The big thing… (the bikes) are giving us the opportunity to lower our travel emissions,” providing an “excellent way” for the department to decrease its carbon footprint.
Dougherty said the reaction from the community has been “great” and that the bikes are getting “the guys out in the community.”
The project grew out of a letter to Kellie McClement, plant administrator with Seneca Generation LLC, outlining the project idea.
The response? Seneca provided the funding necessary – about $5,000 – to fully fund the project.
Dougherty said he was “completely blown away” when that news came.
McClement highlighted the symmetry between this project and the company’s work in the renewable energy space.
She said donating to this project became a “top priority” for them.
The department has had the bikes for about two weeks.
Officers were willing to come in off duty to check out the bikes and several went on a 27-mile training ride last week.
Top assisted speed on the flats? 33 miles per hour.
Dougherty said the range on a single battery charge is up to 50 miles.
“The batteries are pretty efficient,” he said.
The manufacturer, Recon Power Bikes, focuses on the law enforcement and military spaces. Dougherty said their bikes can be found in law enforcement capacities in Washington D.C. and by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
“It’s incredibly generous,” Mayor David Wortman said of the donation. “(We) certainly appreciate the support.”
Wortman said the bikes make for “another great tool” to facilitate “more one-on-one interactions with residents.”