Cyclists keep riding Northeast Branch trail despite spat of crimes
Patrols have been upped since robberies, assaults along Northeast Branch Trail
by Elahe Izadi | Staff Writer
Cyclists aren't letting a spat of June crimes on a trail that runs through Riverdale Park deter their biking habits.
Three incidents in June where pedestrians and cyclists were robbed or assaulted along the Northeast Branch trail have caused Maryland-National Capital Park Police to increase patrols and community members to encourage others to use the trails more frequently.
The trail starts in College Park and ends near the Hyattsville/Edmonston border.
Scot Brown, a member of the Hyattsville Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee, organized a safe ride June 26 as a "show of force that the community cares and we're going to show up and we're going to respond."
About 35 residents, as well as Hyattsville officials and park, Hyattsville and Riverdale Park police, biked and walked portions of the trail as part of the safe ride and information about trail safety was handed out to residents.
"I wanted to promote the trails as a safe natural resource and a great community resource for everyone in this area," Brown said. "I also wanted to put out there the idea that the more heavily used these trails are the more safe they are."
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