Police Wrap: Geraldton police OIC Sen. Sgt Chris Martin on e-scooter trial, summer crime and Remembrance Day

Let’s talk about e-scooters. On my first couple of days back from leave, I have noticed plenty of people riding the scooters and using this new hire service.

We haven’t had any reported stolen and I can see the company out and about, driving and picking them up. It’s a really fantastic mobility initiative for Geraldton and it opens an avenue to better modes of transport for the community.

But unfortunately, as with all great initiatives, there’s the occasional one or two people who are not riding them according to the rules. So I just want to take the opportunity to talk about some of the expectations and remind ourselves of key rules.

I’ve observed some flaunting the “one person per scooter rule” — we don’t want to see three or four people riding these devices. Some of these scooters go at 25km/h. If you fall off, you’re going to hurt yourself.

Second, if you’re going to hire one, you’ve got to use the helmet. We’ve all seen viral clips of people falling off and the consequences are severe. Chuck a helmet on, because police will be taking action if people aren’t abiding by the rules.

The max speed is 10km/h on footpaths and 25km/h on roads. Do the right thing, treat them properly and don’t be intoxicated when you use them. There’s going to be an accident and we could lose the service in Geraldton.

The scooter comes with a bell: use it when you are in busy areas, particularly the foreshore.

Next, I want to remind all residents to keep their doors and windows locked during the summer months. It’s best to get security screens for fresh air. It’s the basic things we talk about every week to make it difficult for crooks, such as locking things away and other preventative measures such as CCTV.

If you want crime prevention advice, call us at the station. We’re coming out of that pandemic space, it’s going to be a great summer and I know I’m looking forward to warm days on the beach with the kids.

Officers are forming a summer crime strategy leading into the warmer months. By assessing crime trends from last year, we will plan ahead and better understand what new approach we can take to reduce crime and keep the community safe.

Our main focus will be on youth crime and a heightened police presence. Generally, youth crime has a reduction in the cooler months and we see that with all crime stats. We want to continue that as we head into summer.

We will be working closely with our partners at PCYC, the City of Greater Geraldton, community program Target 120 and our youth policing team to come up with activities to keep the kids busy to make sure they aren’t getting on the wrong side of the law.

Parents and guardians who may have kids teetering on the edge of bad behaviour, give us a call at the police station and we can offer support and advice.

Finally, I would like to thank the community who turned up to honour officers fallen in the line of duty at the Police Remembrance Day service on Thursday.

Sen. Sgt Chris Martin is the officer in charge at Geraldton police station