Up here in the northern climates, winter means snow and ice. In some areas it gets cold but they don’t get quite as much snow and police bikes still patrol the roads but usually mount sidecars for the stability and that occasional snow or icy patch. This year the Harley Davidsons used by the Pittsburgh, PA police are doing something a little different. Instead of sidecars, they’re going to use the MTC Voyager. The Voyager is a two wheel add on mounted to the rear of the motorcycle. Once mounted, it looks like a trike but it actually is a four wheeler. The rear tire is still the drive wheel but there are now two stabilizing wheels on the sides.

If you have ever dealt with a sidecar, you know mounting and alignment can take a long time. The Voyager is a five minute job. Once mounted, you no longer lean, the bike is locked upright and steers like a sidecar rig. The fast change of this unit is a real selling point. Don’t need the extra wheels? In five minutes, you’re back to two wheeling.

This is a pretty neat unit. I had never heard of it and it costs less than a sidecar, too, so for police departments wanting to save a little money, they get the the benefit of the extra stability plus quick change along with lower costs. For some older riders, this could be a great way to easily continue riding on the bike you already have. The Voyager is available for a wide range of bikes, not just Harleys. This is cool, I like it.