Greater Manchester Police have become one of the first Force’s in England to trial a new petrol-electric hybrid motorcycle.
A new-look three-wheeled bike will be taking to the streets in the coming days in a move that will see another mode of sustainable transport become available for the emergency services.
The innovative WMC300FR motorcycle has been developed by Northamptonshire based White Motorcycle Concepts (WMC) in collaboration with Northamptonshire Police and a number of British engineering innovation companies.
GMP will be handed the keys to two three-wheeled bikes which will be used in a magnitude of different roads policing environments such as: patrolling high harm collision routes carrying out speed enforcement, attending road traffic incidents and traffic management for transfers to and from court and Manchester City’s and United’s home UEFA Champions League fixtures.
They will also be utilised throughout road safety campaigns for engagement and enforcement purposes as well as events such as the Conservative party conference this month.
The batteries are compact and easily removed, and spares can be carried on the bike or conveniently stored back at the station – meaning the bikes do not need downtime for charging and can continue to be used for patrol.
The design also provides a three-pin plug and USB ports, creating a mobile workstation for a busy neighbourhood officer and allowing them to spend even more time on their beat.
Its three-wheel design also means the bikes can be driven on a standard car licence, enabling more officers to use them following just basic training and offering greater flexibility in deployment.
Chief Inspector Ronnie Neilson from GMP’s Specialist Operations said: “This is a really exciting step forward for the Roads Policing Unit at Greater Manchester Police and our commitment to reduce road danger through Vision Zero, which is an ambition to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries, while increasing safe, healthy, equitable mobility for all.
“These bikes will help us with our proactive policing throughout the whole of Greater Manchester, allowing us to have a more visible presence in neighbourhoods during our-day-to-day patrols as well as policing major events.
“We have six Traffic PSCO’s who have been trained to ride these bikes, with a view to more officers being trained in the near future.
“My thanks also go to Safer Roads Greater Manchester who have part-funded this trial, and we are all looking forward to seeing what the next six-months have in store.”
CEO of White Motorcycle Concepts Robert White added: “We are incredibly proud to see Greater Manchester Police adopt the WMC300FR into their fleet.
“They have had a great impact upon Northamptonshire Police’s visibility and neighbourhood policing, however, Greater Manchester Police have very different geography and challenges that these WMC300FR’s will look to address, demonstrating their operational flexibility.
“We are an innovative organisation and are looking to work collaboratively with police forces, like GMP, to support their fleet transition away from fossil fuels, whilst maintaining/enhancing operational presence.”
