The Palisades Interstate Parkway Police Department is proud to announce the creation of its new Bicycle Unit. The Bicycle Unit will be an integral part of patrol operations within the department as it allows officers more advantages with public outreach and response. The officers will gain mobility in their patrol operations by reaching more remote locations in less time but also allow them to patrol more crowded areas where patrol vehicles are impractical.The New Jersey section of the Palisades Interstate Park is the region’s most active concentration of bicycle activity on both amateur and professional levels. The new unit will allow the officers to connect with the cycling community on a more common ground and bring more safety
awareness to riders.

Staff:

When the concept of a bicycle unit was created, Chief Coppola reached out to the department’s membership seeking those with an interest to volunteer. Within a few hours, almost a dozen officers immediately responded expressing their desire to be a part of the new unit. The members were tasked with equipment research, policy creation, and uniform design. The members also created the Class A division patch which is only worn by those members active in the Bicycle Unit.Dlt. Roman Galloza #345 oversees the Bicycle Unit whose day to day operations are supervised by Sgt. Fabricio Salazar #362. All officers must meet certain requirements including health and wellness in order to be a part of the unit. Unfortunately though, class size limitations only allowed for 6 officers to be initially trained with the balance being trained by summer’s end.Support:

In order for the new unit to be successful we felt it was important to collaborate with those who are experts in the field on a daily basis. In doing so, we met with Carine Joannou, President of Jamis Bicycles in Northvale New Jersey (www.JamisBikes.com). Much of our success in the unit is attributed to the support and assistance of Jamis Bicycles. During the research phase of the unit’s creation, we discussed with Mrs. Joannou what the needs of the bicycle community were, how we could meet them, and what the bicycle community would benefit most from a unit such as ours.

After designing our plans to meet those objectives, Mrs. Joannou advised us that they would be donating six new model Trail X3 bicycles as well as assisting us in procuring the equipment needed by each rider.

On Wednesday, May 14th, 2014 representation from Jamis Bicycles presented members of the Palisades Interstate Parkway Police Department’s command staff and Bicycle Unit with the six new bicycles and equipment. Production crews also began filming footage documenting the creation of the new bicycle unit, the training of the officers, and their time on the road.

Mrs. Joannou lauded the program stating: “We are excited to work with the Palisades Interstate Parkway Police Department on this initiative. It is a perfect alignment for our company to work with the law enforcement community on a project that is designed to enhance bicycle safety in the community. We feel the Trail X3 bicycles were perfect for their patrols on the roadway as well as the rugged off road terrain they have in the area. ”