Sheridan PD adds three new Durangos to force

The Sheridan Police Department has added three new Dodge Durangos to its fleet of patrol vehicles. 

The sport utility vehicles were chosen to replace aging Dodge Chargers that had become too costly to maintain. 

According to SPD Chief Travis Koltiska, the police department works to replace vehicles that have reached 80,000 miles. Once the marker is reached, or vehicles reach eight years of service, it becomes more cost efficient to replace than to spend funds on repairs and upkeep. 

Purchased locally at Sheridan Motors, each Durango cost the department $31,600 according to SPD Lieutenant Tom Ringley. To outfit the utility vehicles for use by law enforcement, SPD paid another $16,000. Although that appears to be a considerable amount to outfit an SUV, Ringley said, each vehicle has new lights, sirens, camera systems, radios, computer systems and more. Each system is built to withstand the rigorous duties of law enforcement.  

During an appearance on Sheridan Media’s Public Pulse, Ringley explained to listeners that in Wyoming, sometimes utility and reliability in bad weather is better for law enforcement than speed while deciding on new vehicles to purchase this year. 

According to Koltiska, SPD used General Purpose Excise Tax funds awarded to the department last year to purchase the vehicles.