Tighter Budgets Mean New Canaan Police Driving Older Vehicles

New Canaan's police department needs new patrol vehicles.

The department's current fleet of 17 vehicles is comprised of Ford Explorers, Expeditions and Crown Victoria sedans.  There's also one motorcycle and a 1988 Chevy truck that is used as a maintenance vehicle.

It might be okay for a family car to have more than 68,000 miles on the speedometer, but for an emergency vehicle that's high. When a police vehicle reaches 70,000-75,000 miles it's usually taken out of service, said Capt. Leon Krolikowski, who is in charge of Operations and Staff Services. "Three department vehicles are currently over that and a couple of vehicles are approaching that mileage mark."

There used to be a normal replacement schedule for new patrol vehicles, but tight budgets have thrown off the rotation. A couple of the Crown Victoria sedans are from model year 2003, said Krolikowski.

"In years past we'd purchase between two to four vehicles a year," he said. "The past two years, because we've been cognizant of budget constraints, we purchased one new vehicle."

Purchasing a new car for the police department is complicated.   "These aren't vehicles that the normal public drives," Krolikowski said.  "They're always on the road. "

The vehicles serve as mobile offices, and are in constant use. "The most critical thing to remember is that in case of emergencies, like what happened on Ponus Ridge, sometimes our officers don't have enough vehicles. There are three different shifts and an oncoming shift may have to wait for a vehicle."

Krolikowski does not think the age of the fleet compromises officers' or the public's safety. "Our emergency vehicles are on the road 24 hours a day, but our fleet is very safe and our officers are very safe," he said.

The model of choice for the department is the Ford Crown Victoria."There are other brands out there, but we haven't found any as reliable or efficient," Krolikowski said. He is open to exploring other options. It's just that there's a lot to consider when looking for a new patrol car.

"We test drove a Dodge Charger, but if we change a brand not all of the existing equipment will fit into the vehicle, which would be an additional expense," Krolikowski said.

Weather is another consideration when choosing a vehicle. Krolikowski said he's satisfied with the performance of the department's Ford Explorers on New Canaan's winter roads.

Like other people shopping for personal transportation, Krolikowski is exploring alternatives to traditional gas-powered vehicles.

"In the future we may look at electric vehicles, or more fuel efficient, environmentally friendly [vehicles]," he said, "but they may not be adequate electrically to run our lights and equipment."

Krolikowski will begin looking at numbers and create a budget in the fall.  Then he'll start making presentations to the various town committees that will decide what New Canaan taxpayers can and can't afford.  It's a familiar story in this slow economy -- with a few extra bells and whistles.