Council Asks Mayor For New Medford Police Cruisers

MEDFORD, MA — The city is exploring options, including a potential shift to electric vehicles, as it begins replacing parts of its fleet of police cruisers.

At Tuesday's city council meeting, Councilor Richard Caraviello introduced a resolution calling on the mayor to begin replacing patrol cars, the majority of which are four years old with more than 100,000 miles on them.

At the time of the last purchase, "we talked about setting up a plan where we'd be purchasing cars every year," Caraviello said, but that idea never moved forward.

Nina Nazarian, the mayor's chief of staff, told the council a free cash request will be coming in March that includes two police cruisers. Additional funding for more cruisers has been identified in future years, but the administration needs to ensure the purchases align with its Capital Plan.

Council President Nicole Morell amended the resolution to request information about incorporating hybrid or electric vehicles into the police fleet. Vice President Zac Bears asked if the department will continue to use SUV-sized vehicles or go back to sedans.

"I think that's all they're making for police departments at this moment...seems to be the trend in police cars across the country," Caraviello said.

The motion passed 7-0.