To find out what Thames Valley Police (TVP) does for cyclists, and perhaps what more they could do, we invited a TVP representative to talk to us at our June Open Meeting. Sergeant Betsy Palmer duly showed up for duty and treated us to a wonderfully frank and informative Q & A session.
Betsy is a keen cyclist herself and uses a bike to commute to work. She works in the Neighbourhood Policing team and told us their priorities are driven by residents’ opinions and crime data, with retail crime and anti-social behaviour being high on the list. Consequently, cyclists may not figure as highly on TVP’s priorities as Betsy herself would wish.
If you are interested, you can find out the neighbourhood police priorities for your local area on the TVP website: https://tinyurl.com/w8jt9n3v.
When asked how the TVP could make cycling better and safer, Betsy felt that more enforcement in relation to driving offences and speeding would help; and in terms of what cyclists themselves could do, Betsy suggested good visibility (clothes/lights) and exercising caution when overtaking and undertaking.
However, she pointed out the threshold of evidential proof is high for action to be taken. Many offences that are reported in relation to careless or dangerous driving the TVP struggle to prove, as it is often one word against the other. Betsy suggested go-pro cameras are useful when cycling on the road as they can be used to prove offences.
Betsy explained whilst the Roads Policing team deal with road safety, the Neighbourhood teams can issue tickets in relation to basic road traffic offences and report people to court.
The Neighbourhood teams do get to deal with bike thefts and have deployed trap bikes in high theft areas, as well as the use of plain clothes officers. Betsy stated they seize any bikes they suspect are stolen and bring them back to the station until someone can prove ownership and claim them.
As a result they have a lot of unclaimed bikes in store! In this respect Betsy remarked the use of Bike Register kits* and other forms of bike marking are really important. Firstly, they help prevent thefts if they are clearly marked on bikes, and secondly, they make it much easier for the TVP to reunite stolen bikes with their owners. Knowing the serial number of your bike can also be very helpful.
Besty explained as a general rule crimes are investigated proportionately, taking into account the available evidence and the threat, harm and risk surrounding them. There will always be a crime assessment, and if there are reasonable lines of enquiry, then these should be taken by officers to establish where there is sufficient evidence to proceed. However, if it is assessed there is no chance of a prosecution, then the crime just gets filed.
Betsy’s advice if you are a victim of crime, is to always make note of your crime reference number. Officers in Reading are always busy, so progress can be slow, but if you feel you are being ignored, then call 101 to chase progress, as this can lead to an investigation being escalated.
Keith Elliott
RCC Secretary
* Reading Cycle Campaign members can get a 10% discount on Bike Register kits. Visit our Cycle Hub for details: https://tinyurl.com/4ey59b7n
