HALIFAX—Halifax police are hoping two new cruisers with ghost decals will act as a “hybrid” between their fully unmarked and marked cars to better catch drivers breaking traffic laws.

The force unveiled the two 2017 Ford Taurus Interceptors at an event Wednesday as part of National Road Safety Week. They will officially go into the fleet later this week, replacing two older fully-marked vehicles.

Halifax Regional Police (HRP) Sgt. Mo Chediac of traffic services pointed out how the front and back of the new cars look like regular white cars at first glance, but actually have greyed-out or “ghost decaling” rather than the traditional blue markings.

The ghost decals are still as reflective at night as the traditional markings, if not more so, Chediac added.

The large police logo on the hood is also missing on the new cars, Chediac said, while another change was moving the emergency lights to become integrated behind the windshield rather than on top of the roof. There are also lights in the front grill, on the side mirrors, and back passenger windows.

“The whole approach to it is not so much to hide or conceal, the approach is to have a softer look than the traditional police vehicle from the front and the rear,” Chediac told reporters Wednesday.

Chediac said there are some traffic issues that have been hard to detect with traditionally marked police vehicles, like cellphone use, unsafe lane changes, dangerous or distracted driving, passing stopped school buses, or crosswalk violations.

Usually, drivers doing any of those things can spot a marked police car “a kilometre away” and change their behaviour until they’re out of sight again and simply return to the illegal behaviour, Chediac said.

Although the idea is not to be “sneaky,” Chediac said, the new ghost cars are meant to “blend in with traffic” so police can spot offences before motorists notice them.

“In the end the only way to fix a problem … is sometimes to change our approaches, and sometimes that’s an equipment approach,” Chediac said.

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Whether it’s an officer educating a driver, handing them a ticket, or both, Chediac said those are the interactions that will really cut down on offences that affect the quality of life of HRM residents, including cyclists and pedestrians as well as motorists.

The sides of the new cars still have the traditional blue stripes and HRP logo, which Chediac said is important because the vehicles are still emergency vehicles and will need to remain visible when going through intersections so they don’t create a traffic hazard.

“We do have fully unmarked police Ford Taurus’s and we have traditionally-marked Ford Taurus, and this is kind of the hybrid approach in-between the two. We’ll evaluate the success based on that and see where we go,” Chediac said.

The ghost decal design has been widely used by police forces in the United States as well as Ontario, Chediac said, but this marks the first time they will be used in Halifax.

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