Police Resort to Advertising on Cruisers

What do you do when your aging police car fleet needs replacing? Sell ads, it seems. That’s what the police department in Toledo, Ohio, is going to try when it starts bringing in new police cruisers to replace more than 100 that are out of date. The police department sent out letters to 1,000 local businesses, and four have shown interest.

The advertising would be placed on the rear quarter panels on both sides of the cruisers, where “9-1-1” appears. One lawyer and one small retail business have already committed $15,000 each to sponsor a car. The Toledo Fire Department is going to wait and see how the program works before following suit.

We guess it will be easier for those arrested to get a lawyer when the phone number is right there on the car, but it still seems a bit strange to us. What do you think? Does advertising on police cars bother you, or is it a smart way to raise money and keep taxes down?

Two Commit to Placing Ads on Police Cars (Toledo Blade)