Baltimore police said nearly 300 patrol vehicles need to be replaced, but supply chain issues are keeping new cars from hitting the road.
To ease the shortage, the department is working to replace some parts and “41 vehicles should be patrol-ready by March 1,” police spokeswoman Amanda Krotki said.
Another 38 vehicles should be completed and delivered mid-spring, pending supply chain issues, Krotki said in an email.
Among the department’s fleet are 2012 Chevy Caprices and Ford Interceptor sedan and utility vehicles from 2014 and 2018. The newest vehicles are 2021 Ford Interceptor Hybrid SUVs.
The department is working to update its vehicles as part of the reforms under the consent decree.
A recent report by the monitoring team that is helping the department implement reforms said the purchase of 80 new cars “is significant because among officers’ chief complaints has been the poor condition of their cars, which, for patrol officers, effectively serve as their offices,” the report said.
Baltimore officers ride in patrol cars alone instead of doubling up, unless they are part of a specialized unit.
“We still have a single officer car concept in Baltimore unless we have, at the moment, a shortage of vehicles, which we often do,” Harrison said at a recent news conference.
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