Several newly redesigned police patrol vehicles will be seen on the streets of Annapolis starting Friday, August 9. The new design differs significantly from previous Annapolis Police Department police patrol vehicles–notably in the color (the new ones are black) and the look (there is a new graphic on the side and most of them will have interior light bars).
For a few months there will be three different designs of Annapolis Police Department patrol vehicles being utilized by officers. These include dark blue Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor sedans with gold striping, a graphic of the Annapolis Police Department seal, “POLICE” and “EMERGENCY 911” on the sides and dark blue Ford Police Interceptor Sedan (Taurus) and Utility (Explorer) vehicles which have gold and white striping, a graphic of the Annapolis Police Department badge, “POLICE ANNAPOLIS” and “EMERGENCY 911” on the sides. The Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptors are the oldest vehicles in the police department’s fleet and are expected to be out of common use by officers by December of 2019.
The new vehicles are black Ford Police Interceptor Utility vehicles. They have grey and white striping, a graphic of the Annapolis Police Department badge, “POLICE ANNAPOLIS” and “DIAL 911” on the sides. Additionally, the new vehicles will have infrared cameras mounted on the spotlights to assist officers finding suspects or lost or missing individuals. Each will also be equipped with a GPS to track the location of the vehicle. And to insure officers can communicate, the vehicles will be equipped with the AT&T FirstNet technology that give police communication (data and voice) priority over other wireless traffic in the area. Sixty of the new vehicles to be purchased over the next year will be marked. The remainder will be unmarked.
The department is in the process of replacing all of the vehicles in the fleet in order to give each sworn officer a take home vehicle. Currently the department is at 115 officers with 124 being budgeted. The take home vehicles was a requirement in the new union contract negotiated by Mayor Buckley and his administration. For officers that live outside of Anne Arundel County, they will pay $50/month for the use of the vehicle.
