Chinese police are preparing to ride Harley-Davidson motorcycles after the company launched a training program with Beijing Police College.

Ten high-performance Harley-Davidson police motorcycles will be used in the 12-month program, which aims to improve the driving skills of local police.

The company said it will run a series of courses, which each includes three days of training for about 15 to 20 participants.

It is the first time that Harley-Davidson has cooperated with a Chinese police college, the company said in an email to China Daily.

The motorcycle brand wishes to have long-term cooperation with domestic police colleges and share its experience in training drivers and trainers, it said.

The first Harley-Davidson police motorcycle was built and delivered to the police of Detroit in 1908.

In the following years, the brand gradually became a popular choice by police forces in the US and the rest of the world.

More than 20 years ago the company started working with the Northwestern University Center for Public Safety in the United States to provide training for police around the world.

The motorcycle maker's relationship with Chinese police can be traced back to 1959, when the Shanghai Public Security Bureau used a Harley-Davidson for a reception of foreign guests.

In 2008, Qingdao and Beijing police bureaus used Harley-Davidson motorcycles for testing and evaluation.

The demand for police motorcycles is rising because motorcycles are agile, convenient and fuel-efficient, according to the company.

Harley-Davidson didn't disclose how many of its motorcycles were used by the Chinese police.

Teng Jian, president of Beijing Police College, said that the college had many years of experience in training motorcycle drivers and the cooperation with Harley-Davidson would further enhance its strength.

Training improves not only driving skills but also the ability of police to deal with emergencies, he said.

Motorcycles are important tools for police in China's capital as the streets are often crowded and some hutongs are too narrow for cars to pass through.

According to previous local newspaper reports, most motorcycles used by police in Beijing are made by Yamaha, Honda and domestic manufacturer Haojue.

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