City police giving environment and gas budget a break

(l to r) Police Chief Paul Cook, Cst. Merv Shantz, Cst. Paul Trahan, Cst. Steve Sproule, Cst. Steve Trahan and Sgt. Noel Coulas

The North Bay Police Service announced Wednesday that they will once again hit the streets on two wheels.

Believing that the Bike Patrol Unit (BPU) program is essential to the community the NBPS not only renewed the program but added three new Law Enforcement bicycles to the existing fleet and secured five officers to carry out patrols throughout North Bay and Callander.

“We’re very pleased to have the bike patrol back this summer,” states Police Chief Paul Cook.

“We find that our officers are more approachable to the community when they are on bike, certainly it increases our visibility.”

“Being out on a bike will allow us to meet people out on the street at their level,” says Traffic Enforcement Officer Constable Merv Shantz.

“We now have the ability to stop and talk to people and educate them about bike safety, or, if a crime is being committed and we are in the area, we can get there quickly and take the call ourselves, or assist other officers that may need a hand.”

Shantz says the BPU will run the months of July, August and September and thank to the help of North Riders bike shop on King Street the officers are fully equipped, clearly identifiable, and have modified Police Uniforms which will keep them comfortable while riding.

Cook says not only will BPU help give the gas budget and environment a break, but the officers will be fully equipped to address calls and have the ability to access areas like back streets and alleyways that car patrol officers simply can’t.

“There’s a number of areas of concern, the downtown core of course, we’ve had an ongoing problem with young people riding their bikes on the sidewalk, not wearing helmets and it’s a safety issue that we are going to try and deal with the through the Bike Patrol.”

“We’ve got miles and miles of waterfront and bike paths and this gives us an opportunity to provide safety and security the people that are using those paths and trails,” adds Cook.

Shantz says that officers will be out to enforce helmet laws as well as the rest of rules of the road and notes that everyone under 18 must properly wear a bicycle helmet at all times or face an $80 fine. As well cyclists riding on sidewalks in the downtown core also face a $60 fine.

“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen a kid without a helmet ride right through a stop sign and almost get hit by a passing car,” says Shantz.

“Sometimes they just don’t realize that they can be severely hurt or killed, and that’s where we come in. Often just a little bit of education will do the trick, to get people to think about the dangers of their actions.”

The Bike Patrol unit members are Constables Steve Sproule, Paul Trahan, Steve Taylor, Merv Shantz and Steve Trahan.

The Bike Patrol Unit (BPU) is designed to complement the existing police patrols, while adding emphasis to bicycle and pedestrian safety.


Bicycle related laws and fines

- Everyone under 18 must wear a proper helmet with chin strap done up $80

- Caregiver of child under 16 are responsible for helmet on child $ 80

- Improper (or no) arm signal to indicate turns or stops $110

- Ride two on a bike $110

- Cyclist - fail to stop and identify self to police $110

Equipment related laws and fines

- Bikes must have proper brakes $110

- Bikes must have a horn, or bell $110

- At night, bikes must have a light at the front, and a light or reflector at the rear $35