May is Bike Month: What Muskego Police Want You to Know

Saddle up and ride, but take care

Community Resource Officer Ann Sheridan reminded residents that this week is Bike To Work Week, which in theory sounds like a good idea, but does require a little forethought.

In an effort to get you to work safely, Sheridan shared the following tips: 

• Bikers should follow the flow of traffic; this includes follwing traffic signals and rules of the road, just like vehicles.

• Use hand signals: With the left arm extended straight out, that signals an upcoming left turn; with the arm bent at the elbow and hand pointing straight up, that's a right turn. Hand pointing down is a stop.

• Wear a helmet, properly. The helmet should be snug on your head, positioned 1-2 fingers above your eyebrows. There should be a 'V' in the strap below the ear, and the strap should be secured, still being able to place one finger between your chin and strap.  

If you decide that biking from your home in Muskego to downtown Milwaukee for work does not sound like a good idea next week, motorists should remember to give bikers three feet of room while passing. If you are passing a biker, make sure your are yielding to oncoming traffic; they have the right of way. 

Dude, where's my bike?

Every year, the Muskego Police collect about 30 bikes that remain unclaimed through the summer, and end up getting resold on the Friday of the Muskego Community Festival. It's an occurance that has Lt. Dave Constantineau puzzled.

"These often are bikes found at parks, in ditches or elsewhere and are brought to us, and they are in mint to excellent condition," he explained. "I guess I feel if that were my bike, my parents would be asking me a lot of questions."

Constantineau said it's rare that anyone comes to the department to inquire on a bike, but getting a license is still something they can do to find a bike that's lost or stolen.

Currently the department still uses metal plates, but it's the information they collect when issuing them that is key. Serial numbers are not normally removed from a bike that's stolen, even if the plates are. If police recover a bike that has this information on file, they can quickly reunite the bike with its owner.

In the future the plates will be replaced by stickers to be placed on the bike frame to make it less easy to remove. However, the connection between owner, bike and serial number will keep the department's garage from looking like a bike store.