Toronto police stop rollout of grey cruisers after public backlash

Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders announced Thursday he is stopping the rollout of the force's newdark greypolice cars immediately.

So far, around 100 cars with the new grey and reflective paint design are on the roads. A police spokesperson said no more of the vehicles will be delivered to the force at this time.

"The concern that has been expressed has convinced me that further work is necessary," Saunders said in a news release.

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"There are people who like them. There are people who don't like them," he added.

Saunders also said the force would also be settingup opportunities for public consultationbefore it goes any further.

Safety concerns raised

Toronto Police Services spokesperson Mark Pugashsaid on Thursday that he believesthegrey cars were "extremely visible" because of their fluorescent decals and markingsbut that some didn't like the change.

"There were some people who felt that the cars weren't as visible,"Pugashtold CBC Toronto.

"I think that if there are people who are concerned for safety reasons,I think those are concerns that we have to take seriously."

Pugash also noted that theformer commissioner of the OPP has suggested that North American police forces aremoving to grey cars, which are said to have better resale valuethan white cars. However, safety comes first, he said.

"[Resale value is] a side benefit when at a time when people are quite rightly concerned about money," Pugash said. "Safety will never ever be trumped by the resale value of cars."

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Toronto council stepped in

On Wednesday,City council askedthe police service to retain the cars' current white, red and blue colour scheme. Councillors also asked for an explanation about why the change was made, citinga growing public outcry over the move.

Coun. Michael Thompson, whointroduced themotionaskingthe police board to retain the cars' current colour scheme, said he was pleased with the news.

"I've heard from police officers who are also concerned about the new police cars," he said. "It looksmilitaristic it's intimidating."

Saunders said in aMetro Morninginterview last month that"no deep thought" went into changingthe cars' colour scheme, and hemade the decision on his own because it involved police operations.

"Someone said 'do you want it to look the same or do you want it to look different?' And I said 'let's make it look different,'"Saunders said.

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