A police officer in a San Francisco-area police department in the United States was using a Tesla electric patrol car when the EV reportedly ran low on power during a high-speed chase. In spite of the unfortunate incident, Fremont PD still has full faith in its pilot program that aims to reduce the city's greenhouse gas emissions.
According to the East Bay Times, a Fremont police offer driving a Tesla Model S became involved in pursuit last week. In the middle of the chase, however, the unnamed officer had to radio a dispatch to inform that the electric car notified that its battery life only had 6 miles left, which is not enough to continue the pursuit.
Fremont PD spokesperson Geneva Bosques was quick to clarify that the Model S had not been fully charged at the start of the officer's shift at 2 in the afternoon. The chase, according to the report, took place an hour before midnight.
"The officer was monitoring the charge and responsibly notifying every one of its status during the approximate 10-mile pursuit," Bosques said. "This one instance does not in any way change our feeling regarding the performance of the vehicle for patrol purposes."
The department said that other patrol cars were quick to take over the pursuit, including the California Highway Patrol, which was driving behind the Tesla. However, the chase was eventually called off, and the suspect's car was later found in San Jose.
The driver of the getaway vehicle had been issued a felony warrant, and the car has been linked to a crime in Santa Clara. Unfortunately, Fremont PD failed to apprehend the suspect.
According to Bosques, the incident last week was the station's second pursuit using the Tesla Model S, which had been bought in March of this year. The police department stands that they will continue to use the EV despite the mishap.
Fremont Police Department's pilot program is relatively new, but Bosques says that they're keeping track of all the data. The Tesla, a used 2014 Model S manufactured at the plant in Fremont, began patrolling the streets earlier this year, as part of a pilot program to help reduce the city's greenhouse gas emissions.
The Tesla Model S was hailed the top-selling plug-in electric car worldwide in 2015 and 2016. In 2018, the electric vehicle ranked second next to the Nissan Leaf in the most-sold electric car category.
