Pedalling for public safety: Police to beef up bike patrols downtown

Sault Ste. Marie Police Service plans on beefing up its bicycle patrol as part of a broader effort to increase its visibility in the downtown core. 

In years past, the police service has deployed two of its members to patrol downtown during the summer months. But come next month, it'll have two sets of patrols — consisting of an officer and a special constable — pedalling around the city's core during daytime hours for the sake of public safety.  

“The bicycle patrol is good, because it allows us to cover more distance and more time — and be seen,” Sault Ste. Marie Police Service Chief Hugh Stevenson told reporters following the open portion of Thursday’s police board meeting. “It allows them to get to calls for service quicker in the downtown core.”

Stevenson says the move to increase its bicycle patrol this summer was informed by looking at both calls for service and the “distribution of our occurrences in the downtown.” 

“As a result of that, we want to ensure that we have double the visibility so that the people in this community know that when they come to the downtown core, they will see Sault police,” he said. 

Sault Ste. Marie Police Service plans on deploying more special constables — starting with the bicycle patrol — to assist uniformed officers in different sorts of situations where two police service members are needed. 

According to the Ontario Special Constable Association website, special constables are considered sworn peace officers who are granted all or some of the authority of a police officer depending on their defined roles. 

Sault police will hire four special constables in the near future. Stevenson says the successful applicants will have to complete two weeks of training before taking on active duty.

“It increases our diversification of where we can use the members and where the public sees them, and it just increases our own presence — and it frees up uniform to continue to do calls for service,” he said. 

The police service will also implement its Dynamic Patrol in the city’s downtown core this summer. Two officers on a regular shift will be assigned to downtown — known to Sault police as ‘zone two’ — seven days a week.