BARGERSVILLE, Ind. — With the average price of gas in the Hoosier state staying over $5 per gallon, the Bargersville Police Department is growing its fleet of electric vehicles.
“I think it has been a great investment for us so far,” officer Jeremy Roll said.
The department currently has seven Teslas and will be getting two more next month. Roll said the department got its first Tesla back in 2019 because of estimations that gas prices would rise.
“At that time we estimated gas prices would be about $2.70 by the time we got it,” Roll said.
With gas prices now nearly double that prediction, Roll said that investment has more than paid itself off.
The Teslas cost the department about $60 per month. Compare that to the gas cars that cost more than $550 per month.
“Being that we have these now, the decision to put us in those vehicles turns out to be a really good one,” Roll said.
At the new department’s new headquarters, there are four charging stations. There will be a public charging station added as well that will be free to use.
“For us and the range that they have they haven’t caused any problems,” Roll said.
While he says the cars have been great for his department, Roll said they may not be for everyone. Departments with large coverage areas may have issues with the range of the battery.
While they’re still keeping some gas cars around, Roll said the savings are hard to beat.
“It’s come out to save us and the taxpayers a lot more money than what we had originally anticipated,” Roll said.
