Police are spending more time in their cars and clocking up more kilometres despite a reduction in the national fleet, Police Minister Judith Collins says.Labour revealed today the number of police road patrol cars had been reduced by 73 as the force move
Police are spending more time in their cars and clocking up more kilometres despite a reduction in the national fleet, Police Minister Judith Collins says.
Labour revealed today the number of police road patrol cars had been reduced by 73 as the force moves to cut the total police vehicle fleet by 10 percent.
Transport safety spokeswoman Darien Fenton said police had told her in written answers that vehicle numbers had fallen by 157 with road policing vehicles contributing most to the reduction, going down from 763 to 690.
Ms Fenton said when the cut was seen alongside the $50 million over three years slashed from traffic policing in last year's budget, it was hard to be optimistic about the road toll falling.
Other police vehicle reductions were made in the areas of CIB, administration, general duties and specialist vehicles.
Ms Collins said Ms Fenton held a very simplistic view of road safety.
"Police are now making better use of vehicles. Cars are spending more time on patrol and less time in the car park," she said.
"I'm advised that there has been no reduction in the number of hours that police have spent on traffic patrol or the number of road policing positions.
"In fact, the number of kilometres driven by the national police fleet rose from 90 million in 2008 to 94 million in 2009."
Ms Collins said that in October, November and December last year there were record low fatalities on the roads, at a time when police had already removed vehicles from the fleet.
The 2009 road toll of 384 was one of the lowest on record, she said.
"This Government is taking road safety very seriously, with new laws on cellphone use while driving, drugged driving and illegal street racing."
Last year former deputy commissioner Lynn Provost said a 10 percent cut in vehicles would save $2.4 million without compromising service as part of a drive to cut $21 million from the police budget of $1.5 billion.
