CC_Minutes_2010_0111 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

Memorandum To: City Manager Bill Malinen CC: From: Acting Chief of Police Rick Mathwig Date: January 8, 2010 Re: 2010 Squad Car Information An item on the January 11, 2010, Roseville City Council agenda is related to the purchase of five Ford Crown Victoria squad cars for the Police Department's use. These squad cars are set to replace five current squad cars which have served their useful life and are set to be auctioned. Auction proceeds will be returned to the City's general fund. The 2010 Roseville City Budget approved the. purchase of six squad cars. On 1/4/2010, the City Council approved the purchase of a Dodge Charger to replace the current squad driven by the Department's traffic officer. The purchase of five Ford Crown Victoria squad cars completes the Department's authorized allotment of vehicles to be purchased in 2010. For more than twenty-five years, the Department has exclusively purchased police package vehicles. A police package vehicle has many upgrades from vehicles found on showroom floors which increase the safety and effectiveness of the vehicle. Ford labels their police package vehicle as Police Interceptor. Because emergency driving requires operating at a higher speed than normal driving, it also results in more severe crashes. Country wide statistics indicate a leading cause of officers killed in tfie line of duty is from vehicle crashes. Ford has made the Police Interceptor safer each year, including attempts to solve issues related to vehicle fires resulting from high speed rear end collisions. Most vehicles are not "pursuit rated" and have no upgrades for brakes, suspension or engine life standard on police package vehicles. These vehicles are not designed to be driven at high speeds or to idle for long periods of time. The term pursuit rated does not just mean the vehicle is suited for use during police pursuits, but means the vehicle is rated by the manufacturer to drive under extreme conditions required by emergency driving. For example, the Department responded to 3,128 medically related calls in 2009. A vast majority of them required an emergency response. A list of important upgrades to standard vehicles found in our current Police Interceptor squad cars i; as follows: