WHETHER they’re on foot, riding a bike or in a highway patrol car, police from Chifley LAC will be out and about across the city from next Thursday as part of the Bathurst 1000 operation.
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With an embargo on all leave applications within the command, acting Superintendent Luke Rankin said people can expect to see complete police saturation in the city.
He said while NSW Police’s Major Events and Incidents Group takes carriage of the Mount, Chifley Police will look after the city, and people can expect to see “a stack of police” whether they're on the beat or walking through the shops or licensed premises.
He said the finer details of the Mount operation will be announced by Assistant Commissioner Geoff McKechnie prior to the event, but said police will be drawn from a wide area.
“Everyone works under their [Major Events and Incidents] co-ordination, with Assistant Commissioner McKechnie the overall commander of the operation,” he said.
He said the Mount Operation will have police from all over the Western Region, including specialist units, who will work in three shifts to cover the races.
Away from the Mount, Chifley officers will police the town. The leave embargo is in place to ensure maximum coverage.
“We’ve rostered on all available police. People can expect to see high visibility policing wherever they go,” he said.
Supt Rankin said general duties police will also be working closely with highway patrol, who will also complement the police operation on the Mount.
He said highway patrol will be targeting drink drivers, drug-affected drivers and speeding drivers as well as ensuring the smooth flow of traffic into and out of the city before and after the race.
And the region’s recent weather patterns won’t be assisting this task.
“There will be an influx of travellers to Bathurst and there are some issues created by the floods in the region,” he said.
Despite the complications with the weather, Supt Rankin said the last few race events have been incident-free, with the majority of people here to have fun and watch the race.
“Last year we were generally happy with the way things ran,” he said. “But if something happens we are equipped to deal with it.”