NYPD boys in blue will be driving green.

The Big Apple has bought 40 Nissan Altima hybrid cars to be used as patrol cars for the city’s finest. Instead of patrolling the streets at 16mpg in Impalas (hey GM! Are you still wondering why you are having financial problems?) the boys and girls will be getting 35mpg in their hybrids.

Of course, the city had to pay about $1500 more for each of the hybrid cars. It’ll take 2-3 years for the city to get its money back in gas savings depending on actual mileage and gas prices.

Nissan Altima for the NYPD

NYC Mayor, Michael Bloomberg, said:

“Through savings in fuel, these Altimas can quickly cover their additional cost, from then they will save taxpayers money – another example of how going green is good for our environment and our pocketbooks.”

So, Mike, why stop at 40 cars?

Nissan? Why not give the city a break and ask them to pay you back in 2-3 years once the money has been saved?

[via TreeHugger]

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The Critical Mass rides are no longer what they used to be, a protest against the bicycle unfriendly cities. Why? Because even though a New York City judge ruled that these people don’t need a special permit to ride, NYPD’s stance remains somewhat adversarial.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUkiyBVytRQ[/youtube]

Here we have another violent episode of law enforcement excess, from last Friday (July 25), when a policeman kicked a cyclist off his bicycle at the curb at 46th street and Seventh Avenue. Why? No one knows, but we can only speculate. Maybe the guy didn’t have the required lights or maybe he crossed a red light? No!

A Times-up! representative said that the cyclist in the video, Christopher Long, was arrested and held for 26 hours for attempted assault. What am I missing? Who assaulted, who? Can you see the step back the policeman had to take, to “properly” pull the guy down?

Because of his recent behavior, the 22-year-old Patrick Pogan lost his badge and gun (relief!!), and was placed on “desk duty pending the outcome of a department investigation.”

I’m not a fan of crowds and I’m not sure if I would enjoy walking the streets when the mass comes by, but this is obviously the wrong way of law enforcement.