Story of a police chief who changes sides when it comes to electric cars

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Avondale Estates, Georgia, may be just eight miles east of Atlanta’s bustling downtown, but its unique Tudor Revival architecture and storied history paint a picture of a quieter past. Although the town – population 3,600 and 1.2 square miles – is picturesque, it has not resisted progress.

In August 2022, the Avondale Estates Police Department began converting to electric police vehicles, and today, four of the 17 vehicles in the all-Ford fleet are electric. “We have an F-150® Lightning® truck and three Mustang® Mach-E® SUVs that we use as administrative vehicles,” said Police Chief Harry Hess.

The electric vehicles (EVs) quickly proved to be a worthwhile investment. According to Hess, the department saved nearly 2,790 gallons of gasoline and 19.87 tons of CO2 between September 2022 and May 2024 and continues to see monthly savings while operating the vehicles. For example, in April 2024, the department spent about $200 less on energy costs when comparing gasoline and charging. “In April, we would have spent $651 (on gasoline), but our electric bill for the EV charging stations was only $432 that month.”

“In April, we would have spent $651 (on gas), but our electric bill for the electric vehicle charging stations was only $432 that month.”
Boss Harry Hess

Charging electric vehicles leads to new routines

When the mayor and city council first asked Hess to investigate the introduction of electric vehicles, he had reservations: “To be quite honest, I didn’t want to do it. I thought the electric police vehicles would outcompete us, and at the time we didn’t have charging stations installed anywhere.”

Nevertheless, the city worked closely with its local Ford dealer to obtain bids and ultimately voted unanimously to switch to electric police vehicles for administrative and criminal officers.

Hess will be the first to admit that he “panicked” after the vote.

“We knew we needed chargers — and we needed them yesterday,” he said. Fortunately, local utility Georgia Power worked with the department to find an electrician who specialized in electric vehicle charging.

After evaluating the costs and logistics of installing chargers, the city decided to install Level 2 chargers at the home of Hess and his deputy police chief, as well as at the police station.

In addition to electric police vehicles, Avondale Police have activated Ford Pro™ Telematics1 to streamline vehicle maintenance.

Once the chargers were installed, Hess had to develop some new routines. “I had to remember to plug in the EV when I got home, which was new to me,” he said. “And when the EV’s range dropped below 50%, I immediately wanted to charge again.”

But Hess soon got used to it. He estimates that he drives an average of 120 kilometers a day. “The real learning curve was the worry, but after learning more about the range and capabilities of electric vehicles, I found that I could drive for two to three days on a full charge of the Mach-E.”

“The real learning curve was the worry, but after learning more about the range and capabilities of electric vehicles, I found that I could drive for two to three days on a full charge of the Mach-E.” — Chief Harry Hess

In addition, Hess and his team are using features such as one-pedal driving (which promotes the use of regenerative braking) to maximize the range of the electric vehicle.

“My detective, who drives a Mach-E, lives about 35 miles from the station,” Hess said. “She reduced battery usage during her drive from 15 to 20 percent to just 10 percent by using one-pedal driving.”

Today, Hess’s initial reservations about adopting electric vehicles have evaporated. “Electric vehicles require a little more investment initially, but from what I’ve seen with the development of the Mustang Mach-E SUVs, I expect the investment to be fully recouped by the third or fourth year,” he said. He’s even been asked by other agencies across the state for advice on how to add electric vehicles to their own fleets.

His most important tip? “Make sure you have the charging infrastructure for electric vehicles.”

Story courtesy of Ford.

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