MOUNTAIN VIEW, Colo. (KDVR) — Nestled just to the northwest of Denver sits the small town of Mountain View. 

Historically, the police department has been known for one thing: giving out tickets, and a lot of them. It’s a perception Police Chief Steve Davis has been working to change.

“I’ve spent the last three years trying to change the perception of this town, and this is a big tool to change that perception,” Davis said. Saturday, the department unveiled two new electric bikes, custom-built by Denver company FattE-Bikes.

The bikes come equipped with flashing lights and even a siren, although Davis said you’ll rarely see them in your rearview mirror. 

“We’re not going to be running emergent down Sheridan pulling cars over with the e-bikes,” Davis joked. “Mostly you use that just for the effect of visibility. Most of the calls we get in this area don’t require an actual patrol vehicle, so we can respond on a bicycle to handle those calls.”

Kenny Fischer with FattE-Bikes said Mountain View is the third police department in metro Denver to purchase their bikes. The company, which assembles the bikes in Denver, is known for letting customers customize their rides.

“What’s cool about these guys is that our bikes aren’t being utilized to chase somebody down,” Fischer said. “It’s more about serving the community. So if there are people who need help who tend to scatter when a patrol car comes around, it tends to humanize the officers riding the bikes.”

Davis said the bikes will essentially replace a squad car, saving taxpayers money on fuel and upkeep. But he said it’s the community impact he’s looking forward to the most.

“To have an electric bicycle that you can take out and literally touch the community one on one is not a revenue-generating machine, it’s a community policing machine,” he said.