Act environmentally friendly, catch bad guys and save lives

BOULDER CITY, Nevada (FOX5) – After FOX5 recently aired a report about how electric cars are now overtaking the fastest police cars, we wanted to see which departments in the Valley are getting behind the wheel of these electric vehicles.

It turns out that Boulder City is one of the few departments that tests them.

As soon as they are unplugged, the BCPD’s electric Mustangs are ready to go, and that’s exactly what BCPD Administrative Lieutenant Vincent Albowicz likes because he knows every second counts.

“Sometimes when there is an emergency, depending on what is going on and what the emergency is, we need to get there in a hurry. So the faster we get there, the faster we can save lives,” said Lt. Albowicz.

Not only can they save lives, but their electric vehicles can also be used in chases, reaching speeds of over 155 mph, which could make criminals think twice before speeding through Boulder City in a regular car.

“If you compare it to the Mach E, which is right behind me, it would come up short. The Mach would simply outrun it,” said Lieutenant Albowicz.

The other police departments in the valley can also take an example from this.

FOX5 called around and found that neither Metro PD nor Henderson Police currently have electric vehicles.

The same goes for the North Las Vegas Police Department. A spokesperson told us that the department has no plans to recall the officers at this time.

Lieutenant Albowicz says neighboring departments should give electric vehicles a chance.

“I would tell people not to be afraid of new technologies. Because as these things evolve, they get better and better.”

Another benefit: According to BCPD, the department has saved more than $80,000 in fuel costs and maintenance costs such as oil changes with the newer electric vehicles.

That’s especially important for Boulder City, where Albowicz says, “The city is its own power company. So we wanted to try to use electricity because the city doesn’t own gas stations. We own electricity, so it seemed like a natural fit.” Albowicz is referring to power from the Hoover Dam and nearby solar fields, since the city is not part of Nevada Energy.

Speaking of power, Albowicz says residents near Boulder City and police officers are fortunate to have a number of Tesla Superchargers on the outskirts of town at Railroad Pass. They also have stations at the police department for official use.

This helps officers save time when they’re running low on gas. “Often officers are writing reports and can just plug in the vehicle and take care of the fuel while they write a report. Whereas in a gasoline-powered vehicle, someone would have to write the report and then fill up,” Albowicz said.

As for the long-distance capabilities of the electric vehicles, Albowicz says that not only have there been no maintenance issues, which could take two officers off duty for a while while they get a gasoline-powered vehicle serviced, but their electric vehicles can also cross state lines with no problem.

“We have actually used our electric vehicles to travel between California and the surrounding areas to perform various tasks, conduct training or something similar. We have never had any problems,” said Albowicz.

The Boulder City Police Department told us that the electric vehicles are part of a pilot program.

The department is still in the testing phase to determine whether the cars can meet the demands of demanding police work.

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