Met gets hi-tech bikes to patrol Soho

West End police officers have been issued with a new way of beating the traffic: mountain bikes kitted out almost as extensively as patrol cars.

A pool of officers have customised accessories to go with the state of the art bicycles, specifically designed for chasing criminals through the streets of Soho.

The £2,000 bikes, which are shared between four community officers based at West End Central police station, have an impressive array of features to deal with Soho's winding streets and alleyways.

As well as flashing light combinations and a siren, the bicycles have disc brakes, front suspension and rear-seat suspension - "to deal with London's potholes" - and an automatic locking device.

The word "police" is also marked clearly in black on the white frame. The £500 kit for each of the cyclists includes a helmet, fluorescent body armour, leather gloves and three sets of wrap-around sunglasses in different colours - orange, clear and black - to cater for different weather conditions.

Plans are also under way to examine the possibility of fixing cameras to their helmets which could provide a set of live and roving CCTV footage for the West End Central headquarters.

Inspector Des Keers, who has overseen the project, said: "The bikes are a special prototype designed specifically to deal with Soho. They are of a very high quality, custom made for the Met. We researched the mountain bikes used in New York and Utah and these are very similar."

The bicycles, which can travel at speeds of up to 25 mph, certainly caused a stir when they were introduced to Soho's streets.

A stream of passers-by stopped and stared, while some even approached the officers to applaud them on their new toys.

Car drivers tooted their horns. Workmen released the type of wolf whistles normally reserved for attractive females.

Pc Webb, who has been testing the bikes on the street for the past few weeks, said: "We have had an extremely positive response.

"We are much more high-profile on these bikes and we can cover more of our beat in a smaller amount of time."

Pc Stuart Spinks added: " They're great for getting through the traffic round here. We could get there quicker than cars because driving through somewhere like Piccadilly Circus can take a long time."

Although the officers have yet to make any arrests, Inspector Keers is confident the bicycles will prove to be a great success. He said: "We're going to evaluate it and then decide if we are going to get more and build up a complete bicycle unit. But judging by the response so far, everybody seems to love them."