The Sheridan Police Department has added three new Dodge Durangos to its fleet of patrol cars.
The sport utility vehicles were chosen to replace aging Dodge Chargers that had become too costly to maintain.
According to SPD leader Travis Koltiska, the police are working to replace vehicles that have reached 80,000 miles. Once the mark is reached or vehicles have an eight year service life, replacing them is cheaper than spending money on repairs and maintenance.
According to SPD Lieutenant Tom Ringley, every Durango bought locally from Sheridan Motors cost the department $ 31,600. To equip the commercial vehicles for law enforcement purposes, the SPD paid a further US $ 16,000. While that seems like a sizable amount to equip an SUV, Ringley said, every vehicle has new lights, sirens, camera systems, radios, computer systems, and more. Every system is built to withstand the rigors of law enforcement.
During an appearance on Sheridan Media’s Public Pulse, Ringley explained to the audience that in Wyoming, sometimes utility and reliability in bad weather are better for law enforcement than speed as they decide to buy new vehicles this year.
Tom Ringley
According to Koltiska, the SPD used the general excise tax funds granted to the department last year to purchase the vehicles.