Meghana KandraThe New York Police Department is in talks with Tesla with a deal worth about $12.3 million by purchasing 250 Model 3 vehicles. Each vehicle is known to be purchased for nearly $52,000 revealed from a copy of procurement. The deal is not finalized yet, after which it will be part of the city’s push towards an all-electric fleet.
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Earlier this year is was known that the New York state police department in Hastings-on-Hudson purchased its first electric vehicle, a Tesla Model Y. At that time there was a lot of criticism on the internet as the vehicle had a price tag of $49,000. Comparatively the well-known police cars started at $30,000 like the doge Charger, which is the latest model. As a response, the department stated that these electric cars would help them have lesser fuel costs, with an estimation that they would save about $8,500 on the car within five years.
NYPD is known as the largest police force in the country, such a deal could represent a major win for Tesla in the police cruiser market. Also, the NYPD is not the only major police force looking into Tesla vehicles. Ever since the 2016 purchase, the Los Angeles Police Department has been testing out Tesla vehicles for its police force. There were also occasions with police EVs where when the vehicle halted due to the vehicle not being charged there was a lot of criticism. Stating that it is not safe for the Police force to use EVs. However, the police department defended EVs saying that it was due to the police officer not charging the vehicle on time. It could have happened to a fuel-powered vehicle as well.
EVs exceeding expectations
Last year, the police department in Fremont, California said the Model S “met or exceeded expectations, often demonstrating superior performance when compared to gas-powered police vehicles.”
The Model 3 has also gained favor with police in the UK. On Monday, Max Toozs-Hobson, Account Manager & Emergency Services Lead at Tesla, said on LinkedIn that the police force has found emergency light systems and sirens had little impact on the car’s battery performance. New York City’s Department of Citywide Administrative Services held a public hearing regarding the Tesla contract on Thursday morning. The group has yet to make an official decision on the multi-million dollar deal to purchase EVs.
In reference to talking about the costs, it was stated “The Tesla Model S 85 actual annual energy cost was derived from Geotab’s “Advanced Fuel & EV Energy Report,” spanning the pilot program period. To calculate energy consumption and miles driven for the Tesla, the City of Fremont Fleet Services used Geotab’s fleet management software and a GPS vehicle tracking device. The kilowatt-hour (kWh) energy used for miles driven was converted into kWh per mile. Then, that total was multiplied by the Pacific Gas and Electric (PGE) kWh rate of $0.15 to get the energy cost per mile.”
Credits- Business Insider