In South Pasadena, new police cars are on patrol to reduce crime and reduce emissions at the same time.
The South Pasadena Police Department on Monday unveiled what the city says is the nation’s first all-electric police fleet, with 10 Tesla Model Y vehicles for patrol and 10 Model 3 vehicles for detectives and supervisors.
The city will pay a total of $1.85 million for the electric fleet, officials said in a news release. More than half the cost of the project is being borne by multiple partners who have agreed to build city-managed electric vehicle chargers.
“This transition reflects the city’s vision for a sustainable future based on sound fiscal management and environmental stewardship,” Mayor Evelyn Zneimer said in a news release. “We will have a safe, A clean, taxpayer-funded police force for the 21st century.”
According to the Electrify South Pasadena website, the new zero-emission police vehicles will save the city more than $400,000 in gas and maintenance costs over 10 years.
According to a September 2022 staff report, fuel costs for a Ford gasoline Patrol are $4,355 per year, while fuel costs for a Tesla Model Y are $336 per year.
Fluctuations in natural gas costs could affect the city’s savings, said South Pasadena police Sgt. Tony Abdullah said. Based on natural gas prices in September 2022 ($5.27 per gallon in California), the estimated savings over 10 years are $312,282, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Natural gas prices have fallen since then, falling to $4.47 per gallon this month.
Fuel savings are not the only advantage of zero-emission vehicles.
A 2022 report on the plan to city council noted “significant maintenance and reliability issues” with the gasoline-powered fleet.
A gas-powered police car overheated during a pursuit. Another was taken out of service due to a blown head gasket. Another had electrical and brake issues. Two of the vehicles had air conditioning issues, and one came with a note that the vehicle’s air conditioning was “inadequate” for the K9 it was assigned to.
South Pasadena police have been considering for years whether to replace a fleet of 22 vehicles, six of which have been scrapped. “We are looking for a creative solution,” Abdullah said.
The department surveyed 35 other police departments in the country that had added electric vehicles to see if going all-electric was possible. However, no other agency has transferred the entire force, according to the city.
New vehicles require new infrastructure, so with funding from Southern California Edison’s Charge Ready program, South Pasadena City Hall built 34 Level 2 electric vehicle chargers. An additional Level 3 charger will also be installed in the police station parking lot, which can fully charge an electric vehicle in about an hour.
The city is also expected to benefit from revenue generated from 14 public-access electric vehicle chargers at City Hall and Low Carbon Fuel Standard credits from the state’s Air Resources Board, which could mean thousands of dollars a month.
Backup solar and battery storage systems provided by the Clean Energy Alliance’s Power Ready program protect the sector from running out of power during blackouts and grid failures.
The project is expected to reduce 1,850 tons of smog-producing carbon dioxide by 2030, significantly exceeding the city’s police department’s currently planned goal of reducing 23 tons by 2030.
The shift to Tesla’s fleet reduces the city’s overall emissions reductions by 10%, which is needed to meet the state’s 2030 Climate Action Plan, which aims to reduce statewide greenhouse gas emissions below 1990 levels. 40% reduction.
City Councilman Michael Cacciotti may be the strongest advocate for clean air alternatives.
Cacciotti said the inspiration for the program began two decades ago when he read a study on the dangers of air pollution and decided to trade in his old car for a new one, asking his car dealer: “What is the cleanest car you own? ”
Cacciotti, who is also vice president of the South Coast Air Quality Management District, said he bought a Toyota Prius and the car is still running fine after 20 years and 188,000 miles. He said it recently needed its brakes and rotors replaced for the first time, a testament to how little maintenance hybrid and electric vehicles require.
Cacciotti said protecting public health was the driving factor behind the change. Police cars sit idle while officers write tickets at traffic stops or respond to emergency calls. During this time, the emissions released by gasoline vehicles can affect the health of children and the elderly and exacerbate the climate crisis. “We cannot ignore these things,” he said.
Cacciotti said that now that the city’s electric vehicle infrastructure is in place, he is considering replacing the city’s fire trucks with zero-emission versions in the next few years.
South Pasadena isn’t the first place to make the switch to zero-emission vehicles. The city of Irvine recently added a Cybertruck to its fleet, but it won’t be used for patrols; the city of Anaheim added a Tesla to its pilot program in April.
Meanwhile, at the South Pasadena Police Department, tune-ups, oil changes and spark plug replacements are a thing of the past. Reducing long-term maintenance costs is part of the savings plan.
Abdullah said city officials had to reconsider crashes involving police cars over the past four years as they prepared the plan.
The Tesla Model Y and Model 3 are among the safest vehicles on the market, with the highest ratings from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
“We made this decision because we wanted the safest, most capable vehicle for the job,” the South Pasadena Police Department wrote in the X post.
The department’s statement earned a handshake emoji from the Tesla North America X account.
But Tesla’s safety features, such as lane assist and emergency stop, could adversely affect patrol officers when pursuing a suspect, who must move through traffic at high speeds or take action to ram a fleeing car, forcing it to skid or stop. .
Abdullah said it would be difficult to test an exercise involving ramming a getaway car because it would require crashing a car. Lane assist can be turned off in the Tesla’s settings, and the department has had no issues since testing the first police Tesla in December.
Abdullah said he was optimistic the experiment would be successful.
“This has been years of work,” he said, “and it’s exciting to see it come to fruition.”
