Ann Arbor Puts One of Michigan's First Electric Patrol Vehicles on the Road

The City of Ann Arbor Police Department (AAPD), with help from the Office of Sustainability and Innovations, has officially put one of the state of Michigan’s first electric patrol vehicles on the road – a 2025 Chevy Blazer EV. Not only is this vehicle better for the environment, it provides the same level of quality, security, and performance as its gas-powered counterparts.  

This transition comes in light of this vehicle being the first EV with the “patrol capable” designation from the Michigan State Police, which affirms its ability to meet patrol performance standards. This investment goes hand-in-hand with the City of Ann Arbor’s broader mission to transition its fleet, both light (such as cars and SUVs) and heavy (such as garbage trucks), to electric vehicles. Getting “patrol capable” designation made the Chevy Blazer EV the logical vehicle to introduce into the fleet as part of the City’s continuing efforts to reduce vehicle emissions, improve health and safety, and ensure the highest level of operational performance.   

“We’re happy to be providing better service not only to our community but to our environment,” said Police Chief Andre Anderson. “Since its deployment in September, our new EV has seen continual use with approval from the officers who drive it.”  

Ann Arbor Police have been integrating electric vehicles into their fleet for several years. The department added Ford Mustang Mach-E vehicles in 2021, operate Ford Lightning vehicles, and the AAPD’s Community Standards Unit is now running a fully electric fleet. Forty percent of the City’s light fleet has been electrified now, and this vehicle is a significant step in continuing to grow that percentage. The performance of this vehicle will be reviewed and evaluated to help decide what the future of electric vehicles looks like with the Ann Arbor Police Department’s fleet.  

“We’re grateful to the Police Department for exploring this new use case with us,” said Dr. Missy Stults, Director of the City of Ann Arbor Office of Sustainability and Innovations. “It’s an exciting time, and we’re looking forward to all of the ways we can continue to lessen our emissions while providing Ann Arbor residents with the same high-quality service they expect.” 

Reducing emissions and transitioning gas vehicles to electric is part of the City’s A²ZERO plan – the vision, framework, and associated actions for a just transition to carbon neutrality, community-wide, by the year 2030. To learn more about A²ZERO please visit a2zero.org, and to learn more about the Ann Arbor Police Department, please visit a2gov.org/police.  

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