600 Cops Riding Bikes In Morris Twp. Wed.

The is taking part in the Police Unity Bicycle Tour from May 9 to 12, where local officers will will join peers from around the country in a ride to Washington, D.C.

The event is to raise money and awareness for the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in the nation's capital.

The tour's motto is, "We ride for those who died," to commemorate those fallen officers while in a line of duty.

The township police participate in the event each year, and this year seven members will take part in the tour.

The officers riding this year are Sgt. Mark DiCarlo, Ptl. Dave Powell, Ptl. Chris Tongring, Ptl. Mark Osterhoudt, Ptl. Jenna Landrigan, and retired Chief of Police and current Township Administrator Timothy Quinn.

The officers will ride their bikes 300 miles from East Hanover to the Memorial in Washington, D.C.

The tour takes off on Wednesday, May 9, and the officers will arrive on Saturday, May 12. On May 13 there will be a candlelight vigil held at the Memorial honoring the 163 Law Enforcement Officers killed in 2011, and the 19,000 plus officers who have died since 1792 while in the line of duty.

The township police will join over 1,400 officers from around the country in the bike tour. Six hundred of those officers will ride through Morris Township on Wednesday morning.

The route will bring the bikers out of Madison via Woodland Avenue, to Dwyer Lane, South Street, Southgate Parkway, James Street, and into Harding Township.

The Morris Township Police estimate that around 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday drivers should expect about a 15-minute delay as the riders pass through the township. 

For more information about this event visit www.policeunitytour.com.