It appears Pennsylvania State Police vehicles are getting a redesign …
… Again.
On Wednesday, Trooper Anthony Petroski (@PSPTroopNPIO) posted a sneak peek at the new design for PSP trooper vehicles.
Here’s what he tweeted:
Newly Designed PSP Patrol Vehicle 🚔
What do you think?#WednesdayWisdom #WednesdayThoughts #WednesdayMotivation pic.twitter.com/zrQcqJcJcN
— Trooper Petroski (@PSPTroopNPIO) August 21, 2019
Another New Pennsylvania State Police Vehicle?
Based on the photo, the vehicle looks pretty much the same — same color, same style — but the graphics have changed.
They actually look like the previous (once removed) PSP trooper vehicles.
Here’s what they look like now, in case you’ve sped by too fast to get a good look.
(Image: Pennsylvania State Police/Facebook)
So, the “new” design is really just the old graphics from the white vehicles they used to have but now on the new gray vehicles.
And you’re probably thinking …
“Didn’t they just change the way the State Police cars look?”
You’re right. They did. In fact, it was only in 2017 that this current look (not the one debuted on Wednesday) was first put on our awful roads.
Good Move at the Wrong Time
We’re not sad to see the current design on the State Police cruises go by the wayside. The super-sized TROOPER on the sides of the vehicles looks like it’s just taking up space.
For starters, it just wasn’t a familiar design. We all got used to the way the white vehicles looked and there really wasn’t anything wrong with them. Returning to that design or at least something inspired by that design is a good choice.
According to Petroski, these new designs will be phased in when new vehicles are added to the fleet:
They are still in service. Only the new vehicles will have the new design.
— Trooper Petroski (@PSPTroopNPIO) August 21, 2019
We kinda wish they’d bring back the white vehicles though.
The other problem here is the timing of this decision.
Earlier this year, we learned the state had to funnel money we all paid in via the gas tax to fund an overspent PSP. That gas tax money is supposed to go to fixing the terrible roads State Police have to patrol. Instead, the money got diverted for State Police needs.
Car graphics aren’t cheap and though the current cars may be on the ugly side, maybe changing them isn’t the best use of department money at this time.
Pennsylvania State Police Vehicles Through the Years
Through the lens of Getty Images, here are some looks at Pennsylvania State Police vehicles through the years:
The Year 2000
Can you believe the photo above is about 20 years old? The cruiser in the shot shows the design PSP seems to be reverting to in its peek tweet Wednesday.
State Colors
We’re not a fan of the dark-colored vehicles for the State Police. While we like the look of the white ones from earlier in the 2000s, we REALLY wish they’d go back to these blue-and-yellow beauties. There’s no date on this photo but we’re guessing the 70s?
The Plymouth Fury and More
For a real comprehensive history of Pennsylvania State Police vehicles, including our use of the Plymouth Fury, the use of green, and the use of gold paint, check out State Trooper Plates.
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Mark Bowden
November 12, 2019 at 2:25 pm
You complain about the misuse of money that is being for the vehicle graphics yet you “really wish they would go back to” that custom $$$$$$$$$ two tone paint job from the 60’s..? Talk about wasting money LOL.
admin
November 12, 2019 at 6:13 pm
Pretty much. They’re going to spend the money regardless of what’s said. If that’s the case, give us what we want.
Michael ANDERSON
November 15, 2019 at 11:26 am
What makes the gray car bad, especially the ones with the ghost lettering on the side. They are too hard to see at night and while state troopers does a lot of pulling people over, and traffic accidents, you never want a car too hard to see and have innocent drivers, distracted drivers run into your car.
Plus with gray ghost letters, police are not suppose to be predators jumping on prey. They are suppose to serve the people. It’s just shows the way of thinking between Pennsylvania and places like Europe, where their police cars are very brightly colored and very hard not to notice. It makes it hard for most European police to hide behind a tree to caught the prey.
Dave
January 3, 2022 at 10:26 pm
As much as they serve a great purpose in traffic safety Mike, they are revenue generators. I too disagree with having to ‘decieve’ the public to make more money, that’s why citizens need to get more involved directly in making these concerns known, perhaps by even using the shady MSM to some degree.
Anthony
November 13, 2023 at 12:17 pm
You are absolutely correct.
Brian
January 14, 2020 at 11:04 pm
There was nothing wrong with the new graphics on the gray cars. They shouldn’t have brought back the old graphics unless they were gonna bring back the white cars. The gray cars are not harder to see. The reflective graphics and LED emergency warning lights make the patrol cars perfectly visible.
Anthony
November 13, 2023 at 12:23 pm
Multiple safety studies regarding the safest color for police vehicles found white was the clearly the safest, with black and grey the worst colors and most prone to incidents. And LED emergency lighting makes police vehicles hazardous by blinding motorists, pedestrians, cyclists, and officers.
Canary Commenter
November 13, 2023 at 12:36 pm
Have you ever seen the lights on the pickup truck Schuylkill Haven PD drives? Feels like it could induce a seizure. Insanity!
David Hechler
June 22, 2020 at 5:09 pm
I agree with Brian. The color of the cars won’t make any difference in being noticed. Lots of American police use black cars or black and white without issues of visibility. I grew up in PA and going back to gold and blue cars or green cars would be a mistake. I remember the blue and gold cars of the early 70’s. They ended up being blue and school bus yellow and looked awful.