The South Pasadena Police Department in California is reportedly to become the first such agency in the nation to convert its entire police fleet to electric vehicles.
The police department has already begun replacing its ICE vehicles and will purchase 10 Tesla Model Y patrol cars, according to the Pasadena Star-News.
The Pasadena Star-News says the conversion will be made possible by nearly $500,000 in “clean transportation funding” from the Mobile Source Air Pollution Reduction Review Committee, along with “significant” investments by both Southern California Edison’s Charge Ready program and the South Pasadena City Council.
“We will be putting our officers in the safest and most effective police vehicles on the market,” South Pasadena Councilmember Michael Cacciotti told the paper.
“In addition to that, we will be investing in technology that will help reduce harmful vehicle emissions to improve air quality for all our residents. This effort will provide a model for other jurisdictions; we can build a 21st century police force, save significant resources and clean the air at the same time.”
According to Cacciotti, the project supports the city’s Climate Action Plan, procuring state-of-the-art public safety vehicle technology.
The Pasadena Star-News says the City Council voted in September 2022 to transition the fleet as the current public safety vehicle fleet was beyond its useful service life.
US EV news site Electrek says while there’s been a number of police departments around the world trialing electric vehicles, this is the first time a department will switch out their entire fleet to EVs.
By switching to EVs the police department will also reap significant savings with charging costs just a faction of ICE vehicle fuel costs. Maintenance costs will also be reduced dramatically and EVs last much longer than their ICE equivalents.
Electrek said that Somerset PD was one of the first police departments to use a Model Y as a police patrol vehicle and they believe that a single Model Y could save them $80,000 over 10 years due to gas savings and lower maintenance costs.
The blistering acceleration of Tesla Model 3 and Model Y as well as its collision avoidance technology makes them the ideal law enforcement vehicles.
Daniel Bleakley is a clean technology researcher and advocate with a background in engineering and business. He has a strong interest in electric vehicles, renewable energy, manufacturing and public policy.