The familiar sight of San Diego's small white parking enforcement vehicles is giving way, at least in part, to Ford Mustang Mach-E's.
Some people have expressed an opinion on the switch, including one user on Reddit, who posted: "What the hell is going on?? Why does parking enforcement get a new Mustang to drive around when the roads are still in horrible shape!? Was there a ballot question that I missed or do the citizens not get a say? People are being forced into homelessness but the elected officials get drive performance electric vehicles?"
For those who are uninformed, parking enforcement officers are NOT elected, but the Mustang Mach-E IS the all-electric offspring of the Ford muscle car, which, according to Car and Driver, "starts at $45,390 and goes up to $65,390, depending on the trim and options." According to TopSpeed.com, the 2023 Mustang Mach-E has 266 hp, can reach 60 mph from a dead stop in 6.3 seconds and has a top speed of 114 mph.
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While that may seem like a lot of vehicle to hand out tickets to the illegally parked, a city of San Diego spokesman told NBC 7 that "where routes require extensive mileage, the Mach-Es are a better fit."
San Diego paid $53,400 for each of its 'Stangs, NBC 7 was told by Caleb Olsen, a public information officer for the city: "While the cost for an EV may be a bit higher than a traditional internal combustion engine vehicle, the price is offset by avoiding the need to purchase fuel and in the ongoing maintenance costs. EVs average 40% less in maintenance costs than internal combustion vehicles."
Kathleen Ferrier, EV programs manager for the City of San Diego, said the city also received a $75,000 rebate on eight of the 31 Mustangs in the San Diego fleet.
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NBC 7 first contacted the city of San Diego last Thursday to confirm whether the whips were handing out tickets, but Olsen did not confirm to NBC 7 until Wednesday this week that about "two-thirds of the Mach-Es purchased will be used by Parking Management. This team was looking to replace the three-wheeled 'scooters' that had been part of the vehicle portfolio. Some scooters will remain because they are more appropriate for urban settings, but where routes require extensive mileage, the Mach-Es are a better fit."
That said, an NBC 7 employee spotted a city Mustang with "Parking Enforcement" emblazoned on it last Friday near the intersection of Union and Ash streets.
Ferrier said the city was also restricted on what was available when the Chevrolet Volts went off the market. They also have buying agreements with certain manufacturers.
"What may be available to you as a public buyer may not be available to us as a municipality. So at the time, it was a Mach-E that was available," Ferrier said. "EVs are definitely more expensive. It's a larger capital expense upfront. But what happens is that over time there's a lot of savings with EVs. So at the end of the day, it would be on par with a gasoline vehicle or even cheaper."
About those three-wheelers: San Diego's GO-4 Sliding Door Parking Enforcement vehicles from Westward Industries were not free, of course, but they were cheaper than the Mustangs, with Google archiving a page that said they were out the door for $24,950 (for just one, of course), with top speeds reaching 40 mph.
San Diego police's Leonardo Filiplic said costs go beyond the initial price tag and the scooters are more expensive to maintain and keep up to date.
The main difference between the Mustang Mach-E, though, and the GO-4 is their size. At just 10 feet long and 4.5 feet wide, the GO-4 can slide in a lot of spots that a pony car simply can't, and if one of the scooters is in traffic, approaching drivers can avoid swinging into most of the oncoming lane, which, again, is not the case if a Mustang is busy ticketing your tardy Tacoma.
Asked for a comment regarding the addition of the Mustangs to San Diego's municipal fleet, NBC received the following statement:
"The City’s Climate Action Plan (CAP) requires 100% of all light-duty vehicles to be zero emission by 2035. In accordance with CAP and the city’s vehicle acquisition program, which determines when and which vehicles need to be replaced on a rolling schedule, most of the new Mach-Es were purchased and allotted to the San Diego Police Department (SDPD). Eighteen of them will be used by SDPD for parking enforcement. The decision to purchase Mach-Es was based on multiple factors by the city’s General Services Department, including long-term monetary benefits, supply-chain issues and the recent discontinuation of the Chevy Bolt. At the time of the purchase, the Mach-Es were the only light-duty EV option available to the city."
The Mustangs were purchased between July and December of last year, Olsen said early on Thursday afternoon.
NBC 7 has asked the city where the routes are with extensive mileage that prompted the purchase of the Mustang Mach E's and is waiting to hear back.
The Mustangs and Ford Lightnings (that's the e-version of the F-150 pickup) are all part of the city's move to electrify "100% of its light-duty fleet vehicles and 75% of its medium/heavy-duty vehicles be zero-emissions by 2035," a recently published city news release stated. Incredibly, the city has about 4,000 vehicles in its light- and medium/heavy-duty pool of vehicles.
The Mustangs and Ford Lightning will be joining a municipal e-fleet that boasts those Chevy Bolts as well as hybrids like the Ford Focus and Ford Escape. Also on tap: At least one electric fire truck and a pair of street sweepers, which the city has wish-listed by the end of the year.
