Cincinnati Police Department to replace aging fleet

CINCINNATI - With an aged fleet and the phasing out of the Ford Crown Victoria, the Cincinnati Police Department is shopping for a new cruiser.

In 2012 58 percent of the 226 beat cars were 'out of life cycle.' A cruiser is said to be out of life cycle when it meets two of the following criteria:

• Is older than four years
• Has more than 100,000 miles
• Maintenance costs reach 75 percent of the cost to replace

"Last year when we realized that the Ford Crown Victoria police package car was not going to be made anymore, that Ford was going to the Interceptor, instead of saying we're going to stay with Ford, knowing that they had a new car, Chief Craig decided we were going to test all of the manufacturer's police package cars," said Captain Doug Wiesman.

Much to the thrill of officers that testing phase is now underway. Cincinnati police officers are currently driving a Chevy Caprice, Dodge Charger and a Ford Interceptor.

"The guys on the street are loving the fact that they're getting these brand new cars on the street," said Wiesman.

The department expects to lower yearly maintenance and fuel costs when the choice is made. In addition the new cars all meet new federal safety standards for rollover and crash survival.

"The number one killer of law enforcement officers are crashes," said Wiesman.

Testing will continue for the next few months with a decision expected sometime in the next year.