Sun fires up OSHP cruisers

Solar panels flow electricity to the vehicle’s equipment, even with the engine off.

By D.A. WILKINSON

VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU

The Ohio State Highway Patrol has turned to solar power to help do its job and save money on gas. Solar power will help with stationary patrols and with troopers getting to work.

The patrol went green because its cruisers have so much electronic equipment in the front that the car batteries were often drained, especially when the cars were turned off.

Lt. M.J. Orosz of the patrol's Lisbon Post, said the solar panels were installed on the post’s cruisers two weeks ago. The panels generate electricity.

The OSHP uses Ford Crown Victorias as their standard vehicles.

Troopers take their cruisers home after their shifts to speed response time in case of an emergency.

Orosz said that during a normal period of two days off, he often could not start his cruiser. He added that that since the solar panels have been installed, even with four days of no use, “I have not experienced a dead battery.”

Each cruiser has a wireless computer and computer modem, radios and a global positioning program. A trooper can, for example, push a button on his computer to notify the post he is starting a traffic stop. He can also work on his crash reports from the cruiser.

The patrol tested a 1.5-watt solar panel and a 5-watt solar panel, and went with the larger panel, which is about the size of a laptop computer.

The solar panel in each cruiser is bolted to the shelf behind the left passenger’s seat.

Orosz said the panel obviously doesn’t work at night, but the charge during the daylight hours gets the job done.

The panel eliminates the need to keep the engine running at all times to provide power for the cruiser’s electric equipment.

That uses gasoline. But Orosz said that turning off the engine might let the electronic equipment drain the battery and the car might not start when the trooper had to respond to a call. The solar panels have solved that problem.

Lt. Tony Bradshaw at the OSP headquarters said the patrol will monitor the expected gas savings.

Each solar panel costs $36.99. Even better, the patrol cut up misprinted license plates to make brackets to hold the panel in place.

The change will make life a little easier on the troopers. In the past, when their cruisers wouldn’t start after a couple of days, Orosz said, troopers used their private vehicles to jump-start the cruisers.