Clunker Fix Proposed

City officials have a two-part plan to stop sending their officers on the road in cruisers with holes in the seats and floor, rotting gas tanks, steering wheels that fall off, or computer consoles that crash on drivers.

The police union filed a state grievance over the condition of the cruisers.

The police department has submitted a proposal to the Board of Alders Finance Committee to approve a master lease that would allow for the acquisition of 12 more vehicles a year in addition to the 12 already budgeted for, according to police spokesman Officer David Hartman.

Meanwhile, Chief Administrative Officer Mike Carter said the administration is seeking to add $150,000 to the police department’s annual $300,000 cruiser-buying budget this coming fiscal year. The money would come out of the capital budget.

That would enable the city to buy 12 – 15 new cruisers a year, rather than eight to ten, Carter said. Eventually that would enable the city to replace all remaining 44 cruisers over the next four years.

“I put together the replacement plan for all equipment in Washington, D.C. over a 10 year period” while working as that city’s public works chief, Carter wrote in an email message, ​“and know that equipment, whether large or small, needs to be replaced right at or before the warranty period ends to save on unfunded repairs, some repairs which over a year or two is the cost or replacing a new vehicle. Police cars run 24/7 and need to be on a regular replacement cycle.”

Looking at the long term, Carter said the administration is currently testing out a new system called AssetWorks to track repairs, inventory and costs for public-works vehicle. When that system is up and running, it can be expanded to the police and parks departments, he said. ​“With this data, the departments will be better able to track total vehicle costs and have data to make decisions at various data points. For example, if a police cruiser was bought in 2014 for $ 25,000, and over the next 3 years it has over $12,000 in repairs, that is a good sign to replace it earlier at the four to five-year mark and not wait until the eight year to replace as it will be a huge maintenance cost and have more down time.”

Official NHPD Statement

Officer Hartman issued a statement on the police department’s official position on the state of the fleet in the wake of this Independent story on the subject. Hartman’s statement follows: 

The New Haven Police Department and Police Union are in agreement on many issues regarding the state of the police vehicle fleet. The department and city have been working on solutions for several months now and are anticipating positive results.

There is no disputing many of these vehicles are in need of replacement or repair. Out of necessity, we’ve retained many that are well past their prime. The reason is simply budgetary.

We have a mechanical maintenance division charged with the mechanical upkeep of police vehicles. When such problems or safety concerns regarding a vehicle are discovered, the strict policy is they are to be taken out of service and left for the mechanics to repair. No officer or department employee is ever told or allowed to operate a vehicle known to be unsafe. We rely on the best judgement of those who regularly operate the vehicles – in most cases, officers, to bring those concerns to the certified mechanics on our staff. Any officer – without the need for supervisory approval, may dead-line a fleet vehicle in need of repair.

The Chief of Police is encouraged that the issue of upgrading our aging fleet is being worked on by the department’s motor-pool superintendent, department administrators and the city’s Chief Administrative Officer. We all share the concerns of the Police Union and its membership and are grateful for the support of those able to help us find viable solutions.

How we’re moving forward; the city Finance Committee is meeting to approve a master lease. If approved, this will enable the police department to acquire twelve vehicles each year in addition to the twelve we’re annually budgeted for. Twenty-four a year until we’re caught up. The Chief administrative Officer has also asked for a $150,000 increase to the $300,000 vehicle and maintenance budget. Both are awaiting finance committee approval.