People may notice officers on bikes patrolling Downtown Abilene or Cedar Creek Waterway. APD Assistant Chief Joel Harris says that as the town grows, the entire Abilene Police Department is focused on ensuring the community's safety, and the bike patrols have several advantages for specific parts of the city, “The benefit of being on a bike versus being in vehicles that were much more approachable and able to communicate with members of the public business owners and things like that to kind of build a connection and better understand the issues they have and how we can help and solve those problems together.”
In addition to the heightened return of officers on bicycles, APD has recently announced stepped-up traffic enforcement. Officials hope the increased presence of patrol cars will help make the roads safer. Thanks to a grant from the Texas Department of Transportation more officers will be patrolling specific areas of the city including the Winters Freeway and South First corridor. Abilene has had five traffic-related fatalities this year.