Park Rangers To Ride Chariots
Michigan’s Kensington Metropark rangers recently received battery-fueled vehicles, similar to three-wheeled standing mopeds, from the U.S. Army’s National Automotive Center. If the vehicles do well in tests, they may become the leading form of transportation for park rangers and soldiers.
To date, the sole law enforcement agencies to utilize the chariots are Pennsylvania’s Plymouth Township and California’s Southgate Police Department. The vehicles have mostly been used for community policing because of their ability to fit into tight spaces and the overall presence they produce.
The one complaint so far about the chariots is their inability to drive off-road, something they are too cumbersome at this point to do. Kensington hopes to make the two vehicles part of its patrol unit squad, but is not certain it has enough money to do so, as the chariots cost around $3,500 apiece.
Abstracted by the National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center(NLECTC) from the Detroit News (07/06/04) P. 4B; Seecharan, Akilah .
