Saving Fuel, Protecting The Environment: Grapevine Adds Hybrid Police Vehicles To Fleet

GRAPEVINE (CBSDFW.COM) — The City of Grapevine has incorporated new police hybrid vehicles to their police fleet.

In a release, the department said the hybrid offers the same level of protection and less idle time without sacrificing necessary operation power needed in a police vehicle.

Police vehicles require a computer, radios, cameras, radars, and lights that typically require the vehicle to remain on to keep all of these items operating. But with the new hybrid police units, each of the items operates off of a lithium-ion battery for an extended time, allowing the gas engine to shut off, running only intermittently to charge the battery, even with the air conditioning running.

Hybrid vehicles will also cruise without the engine running until the speed reaches 40 miles per hour, then the high-performance 3.3L Hybrid Engine kicks-in with its 10-speed modular hybrid transmission.

The department said the hybrids will help in the reduction of CO2 emissions and can save upwards of $6000 per vehicle, each year, in fuel costs when used in most (police) daily operations.