There’s no excitement about seeing the inside of a police car, but there’s certainly been some excitement in the community and in the Revere Police Department for outside of the new-look police vehicles.
Trading in the old white and dark blue striped vehicles that bore the City Seal prominently on the door, the RPD has moved back to a more traditional black and white police cruiser, according to Acting Chief Joe Cafarelli – who spearheaded the change.
“A lot of the officers had seen other cities and towns with the more traditional black and white cars and felt they were more professional looking and I thought they were right,†he said. “It was time for a change and these are more recognizable as police cars. It also gets back to one of our points of emphasis in getting back to the traditional roots of law enforcement. It’s been a very welcome change inside the department, and I’m getting good feedback from the community as well.â€
The new design features an alternating black and white pattern with block letters on the side that say ‘Revere Police.’ The American flag has been re-introduced to the design and the symbolic ‘Thin Blue Line’ was added along the side.
It’s a design that was the result of input from all corners of the department.
“Everyone had a little bit of input in it,†said Cafarelli. “I had the final say, but a lot of people gave their input. Some wanted to put the American flag back on and others wanted to make sure the ‘thin blue line’ was represented. I had the basic idea of going back to black and white, but everyone else kind of ran with it. That’s good because it shows that they care.â€
As far as anyone knows, the old police vehicle designs are at least 20 years old.
One of the cornerstones of that design was the large City Seal on the door, and the lack of a clear presentation of the words ‘Revere Police’ on the vehicle.
“One of the problems with having the Seal on the vehicle is that it says ‘North Chelsea’ very prominently on it, and people see that and wonder if we’re the Chelsea Police or the Revere Police,†said the chief. “It made it kind of confusing to people. There’s no misunderstanding who we are with this new design.â€
Another problem with the old cruisers was that they featured an older phone number (284-1212), and they have no reference to the department’s Internet presence.
“The old informational number being on there is outdated,†said the chief. “We don’t want to advertise that for people to call. If there’s an emergency, we want them to call 9-1-1. We want that to be in their minds. We also will have the department website prominently on the cars because people communicate on the web so much these days. They don’t just pick up the phone anymore.â€
Cafarelli said that some of the newer cruisers have already been painted, and he plans to introduce the design incrementally to cruisers and motorcycles. The older vehicles will not be re-painted, but the newer design will be implemented on all existing newer vehicles and all newly purchased vehicles.
However, the SUV vehicles that are used by shift supervisors will not be painted because they are likely to be phased out of the fleet, he said. “Everyone says the design is sharp,†said Sgt. Amy O’Hara, a spokesperson for the police. “That’s the word they’re using.†The new vehicles will also have a motto on the back, but that motto is still a work in progress, Cafarelli said.