A Tesla Model X patrol car in Fremont, California. Photo: Fremont Police Department
A number of US police departments are looking to test out Tesla patrol cars, with the newest city having just voted to do the same.
On Monday, Spokane, Washington city council voted to purchase four Tesla Model Y units for its patrol fleet, as reported by the Spokesman Review.
Council President Breean Beggs was one of the major supporters of the purchase, and has been since a state law passed in 2018 encouraged the department to begin replacing old vehicles with electric vehicles.
The Tesla Model Y SUVs will cost Spokane roughly $418,088.10 USD, and a grant will cover $200,000 of the cost.
Beggs said, “This is a great time to pilot this and see how it works.” He continued, “It would take essentially one charger to be installed.”
After weeks of debate, the council voted Monday to purchase four Tesla Model Y SUVs, overriding a plan outlined by city officials to purchase two hybrid and two traditional gasoline-powered vehicles. https://t.co/OTUxoYiOhF
— The Spokesman-Review (@SpokesmanReview) December 16, 2020
While the move to zero-emissions vehicles should be hard to argue for anyone given the world’s current climate crisis, the Spokane Police Department will also be piloting the new Teslas just months after a wave of nationwide protests following the police murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, among others – a time when many were calling to “defund the police.”
Regardless, pilot testing for the Tesla Model Ys will begin in 2021, and while the vote passed after a year of stagnation, many on the council remain concerned about the charging infrastructure in the Spokane area.
City spokeswoman Marlene Feist said, “The administration remains concerned about this purchase because of the high cost and lack of EV charging infrastructure to support these vehicles as well as the time that they would be unavailable for use due to charging.”
According to the city’s analysis, the vehicles will be able to go roughly two days without being charged. Additionally, other police departments have reported lowered maintenance costs, and longer overall lifetimes for their Tesla patrol cars, boding well for the Spokane Police Department’s newest squad vehicles to-come.
