The British Transport Police (BTP) has added two new electric vehicles (EVs) to its fleet after having taken delivery of a Tesla Model 3 and Kia EV6 this month. BTP is a special force that polices the railway network of England, Wales and Scotland, covering more than 10,000 miles of track and more than 3,000 stations and depots.
The deliveries were announced by BTP Chief Constable Lucy D’Orsi, noting that they are the first all-electric vehicles to join the BTP patrol fleet. Both EVs were outfitted with the signature blue and yellow colour design of UK police cars.
Looking forward to seeing our first all electric car out on patrol @BTP pic.twitter.com/7DLjhtl917
— Chief Constable Lucy D'Orsi CVO QPM (@BTPChief) July 1, 2022
Our first EV seemed to be of interest. Thought I would share our second one which will be going on patrol. pic.twitter.com/al30L3yWUH
— Chief Constable Lucy D'Orsi CVO QPM (@BTPChief) July 4, 2022
The purchases are part of the government’s Road to Zero strategy which aims to reduce emissions from emergency services and convert their entire fleet to electric by 2030.
To showcase what a Tesla can provide, the automaker began officially promoting the Model 3 as an emergency response vehicle in the region and created a demonstration police car to be trialed by various police forces.
After nine months of testing Tesla revealed some of the findings from the testing, showing promising results and debunking a common myth that using EVs as emergency response vehicles in not practical due to range and battery charging time.
While BTP is only adding one Tesla, the Hallandale Beach Police Department in Florida last week announced the purchase of 13 Model Ys for their fleet. Twelve of the EVs will be used by detectives and the other will be trailed as a daily patrol car to see how it handles day-to-day police duties.
