Personal electric vehicles: ready for police tasks when a typical police car is not the best option.
Police Trikkes are turning heads and having a positive impact on the community of Wheeling, West Virginia, according to several local media stories.
Currently, two Trikke Positron are roaming the metropolitan area bordering the Ohio River and the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, thanks to an anonymous donor.
“Immediately upon trying them, we thought they were really cool,” says Lt. Josh Sanders of the Wheeling Police Department in a story on the Intelligencer/Wheeling News-Register website. According to the article, the anonymous donor loved the idea of police Trikkes as much as the officers themselves.
“It’s just another tool in the tool belt,” says Sgt. Rob Safreed in the same article. “They’re very fun to ride, and I think it’ll be a really good tool for community outreach. You’ll be able to get out there in the community more, and people see you more. Plus, they can really extend the range of a typical foot patrol.”
Also in the article, Officer Sanders talks about the impact the Trikkes have already had. “Everybody wants to know what they are. So community engagement is almost instant by just having the ability to stop, have a conversation and have a positive interaction.”
Meanwhile, in a WTRF-TV story about the department’s “fresh new ride,” the same officer Sanders says of the Trikkes: “They’re silent, they can sneak up on folks. They’re fast. It does not take a whole lot of effort like it would a bicycle or foot patrol.”
The Trikkes have already been deployed at several festivals in the area — including the Fourth of July Festival, the Italian Festival, and Waterfront Wednesdays — and the department plans to use them at future local events.
“Usually we’re on foot — but this will give us a quicker response during festivals and those types of larger gatherings,” says Sanders in the Intelligencer story.
Beyond that, he adds in a WTOV news story, the Trikkes can also be helpful in situations that call for special operations.
“Where are the hot spots? Where is there trouble, what type of trouble is that? As part of that operation, we may deploy vehicles like these,” says Sanders. The special operations commander also sings the Trikke’s praises on the Wheeling Police Department Facebook page:
“Already, several residents have seen the positive impact these new Trikkes are having in their area, by just having the ability to stop, have a conversation and have a positive interaction. Being able to make this addition to the Wheeling PD, with a heartfelt thanks to our anonymous donor, will no doubt increase our visibility, response time and enhance our continued efforts on community policing.”
The department also tells its Facebook followers that the Trikkes are personal electric vehicles ready for police tasks when a typical police car is not the best option.
Photos of the Wheeling, West Virginia Police Department Police Trikkes
How America’s cops are embracing this revolutionary electric vehicle.
The Segway is a thing of the past, an artifact of less modern times. In its place, the Trikke Positron is steadfastly becoming the personal electric vehicle of choice for law enforcement officials — from California’s Bay Area Rapid Transit Police, to the Wilmington Police Department in Wilmington, Delaware.
Not only is the three-wheel, battery-powered Positron a great replacement for the lumbering curiosity that was the Segway, “police Trikkes” are proving to be a great multi-purpose tool in their own right, assisting officers in ways the old Segway could’ve only dreamed of.
“There’s no comparison to the other options currently on the market; the Trikkes are miles ahead,” says Officer Mitchel Ashton of the Norfolk PD in Norfolk, Virginia.
It’s a popular sentiment among officers who’ve experienced riding the Positron, built expressly for law enforcement by Trikke Tech, Inc., through its Trikke Professional Mobility division.
“All of my coworkers and the public love the Trikkes,” says Norfolk PD officer Mitchel Ashton (center).
Once makers of the body-powered Trikke carving scooter for consumers, Trikke Tech has evolved to become the U.S.-based manufacturer and distributor of rugged, professional-grade, personal electric patrol vehicles — mainly through word of mouth and the appearance of police Trikkes at many a law enforcement trade show.
Turns out, the cambering technology behind the original Trikke, plus the power of an electric battery have turned what was once a recreational alternative to the bike into a revolutionary new mobility solution for police officers on patrol.
“The proprietary, three-wheel cambering system is perfect for efficiently moving around congested areas, public events, and large campuses,” says Gildo Beleski, Trikke Tech’s CEO and chief engineer. “Trikke Positrons are quiet and highly-ergonomic, with high-torque electric motors, heavy-duty construction, and a small footprint, all technologies we’ve developed for law enforcement applications.”
Whether on patrol with the police departments of Atlantic Beach, Florida, Wheeling, West Virginia, or Royal Oak, Michigan, the Positron is an all-weather, multi-terrain vehicle designed for use in a variety of conditions, both indoors and outdoors, says Beleski.
“They can be parked close to any entrance,” he notes, “and their height makes them far superior to bikes in terms of visibility, especially when it comes to looking over traffic, parked cars, fences, and crowds.”
But don’t just take the word of the company’s CEO and inventor of the Trikke. Consider the rave reviews offered by actual police officers, especially for the Positron’s maneuverability.
“I really enjoy using the Positron,” says Lieutenant Brendon Barth of the Atlanta PD’s Video Integration Center. “It has great mobility, speed, handling and visibility. I’m able to ride on the street and go places cars can’t go. It’s perfect around parks and crowds.”
The Trikke Positron is a head-turner and people magnet.
Another unique featuring often cited: the Positron’s ability to promote positive interaction within the communities officers serve and protect.
“Police also say the Trikkes will make them more visible to the campus community,” notes a story by Dallas’ NewsRadio 1080 KRLD. In it, Dallas College Chief of Police Lauretta Hill echoes the idea that Positrons are a public relations plus: “Officers can get around, and people will walk up to us just because they want to know what it is.”
Turns heads. Promotes positive interaction. Provides a more mobile alternative to the extinct Segway. When’s the last time a police department acquisition did all that?
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