Those who are weary of shopping plazas and filling a cart online yearn for the quaint charm of an old-fashioned town with actual shops inside historic buildings along a Main Street.

Butler County has an assortment of municipalities that fit that description, including Saxonburg, Mars, Harmony and Slippery Rock.

But many shoppers flock to Zelienople, which is a mecca of small shops, unique activity venues, and delicious and varied restaurants and pubs.

Especially during their Thursday evening Open Air Markets, held during the temperate months, shoppers and diners can be seen strolling the streets, stopping at the shops and jamming to music played by a band on Main Street.

To continue to attract people — and their wallets — to the picturesque borough, safety should be a top priority. Who would call a friend and head out to shop in an area where they don’t feel safe?

Enter Zelienople Police Department, which recently received a shipment of electronic bicycles to use for patrolling the downtown area.

Clad in helmets, gloves and reflective outerwear, officers debuted the e-bikes to the public during the Fall Festival last weekend.

The 96-pound bikes can travel almost 30 mph and have a 50-mile range.

Not just any e-bike, the vehicles are outfitted with headlights, red-and-blue emergency lights, sirens, gear bags, and even first aid equipment should an officer come upon an injury on patrol or in pursuit of a perpetrator.

The sleek new vehicles should enhance the feeling of security by residents, business owners, employees, shoppers, diners and visitors of all kinds.

The sight of police pedaling or gliding down the streets and sidewalks in Zelienople also will serve to introduce officers to residents, children and merchants in the borough.

The Butler Eagle congratulates the police on their new vehicles, and the organizations and folks who chipped in the $17,000 to buy them.

May officers safely patrol on them for many years to come.

— PG