If you hear the wail of a siren and see a wave of blue lights coming towards you, you might expect a few police cars to come hurtling past while in mad pursuit of a felon. However, thanks to a new policy in Zurich, the Swiss police will now also be using e-bikes equipped with blue lights and claxons.
Police bikes in Zurich to be given blues and twos
Speaking to Blick, the City Police of Zurich said that they had “upgraded” their fleet of electric bikes. The authorities in Switzerland’s largest city are set to become the first to equip their police officers with bikes that have flashing blue light signals and a siren.
According to the newspaper, the need for lights and sirens became apparent when e-bikes were first introduced to the emergency services in 2018. After commissioning a Swiss company to make the necessary attachments, and a test phase which involved 74 “bike callouts” in 2022, the new additions were deemed a big success.
Authorities hope new e-bikes can replace some cop cars
The police hope that the entire bicycle fleet will be given the new lighting and sound rig, along with a new attachment for mobile phones which can be used to easily keep track of ongoing operations. A spokesperson for the police told Blick that the bikes could even replace regular police cars on the streets of Zurich.
For anyone curious or misguided enough to try and steal one of these highly modified bikes, the authorities had one message: To make sure they are not stolen by people who want to try the vehicles for themselves, the e-bikes are now equipped with a built-in lock.
Thumb image: Shutterstock.com / Judith Linine