Bobbys on bikes

Between June and August 2022, Devon & Cornwall Police collaborated with Cornwall Council on a government-funded 3-month pilot where police officers swapped their cars to e-bikes to improve the visibility of Community Safety Officers, Antisocial Behaviour Officers, Police Officers and Police Community Support Officers (PCSO) in towns across Cornwall and Isles of Scilly.

The pilot revealed that:

• It had a positive impact on participants’ health and wellbeing
• Using the e-bikes instead of the cars freed up vehicles for other priority users
• It meant a reduction in short vehicle trips

The Facts

• 18 e-bikes deployed across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly
• 23 police officers and PCSOs participated in the pilot
• 9,936 miles cycled by participants
• 2,426 kg CO2e saved

PCSO Candice Britten explained that the e-bikes are “brilliant” and that riding one helped her speak to more people. “You feel like you are so much more approachable on a bike than you are in a car,” she said. “You drive past and lots of people see police and they say, ‘Oh, I don’t ever see police unless it’s an emergency’.”

Superintendent Ian Thompson said

“They’ve been able to get to areas that they weren’t ordinarily able to access, either on foot or in vehicles.”

The pilot is now closed and will be moving to a second phase (the roll-out) in the new year.