Three candidates running to be Calgary’s next mayor are weighing in on a new Calgary police pilot project which has officers in the city’s downtown patrolling alone in their cars.
The 10-week project got underway last week, and sees officers on day shifts in District 1 patrolling the area and responding to calls alone.
The union representing police officers, as well as some officers themselves, expressed safety concerns after the force launched the project.
The Calgary Police Service (CPS) said the move was made in hopes of improving response times as well as decreasing the load on “exhausted” officers trying to keep up with increased calls.
WATCH: Global’s Nancy Hixt gets an exclusive ride-along with a Calgary police officer on a solo-patrol as part of a new pilot project in the city’s downtown.
Mayoral candidate Bill Smith said police resorting to solo patrols points to a need for more officers on the streets.
“Here we have the police department making adjustments as best they can based on the personnel that they’ve got and we’ve said this all along — people are concerned about their safety,” Smith said Tuesday.
READ MORE: Trial for 3 Calgary police officers accused of excessive force adjourned until November
“In an economic downturn, crime goes up — we have to give these guys the proper resources.”
Another candidate, Andre Chabot, echoed Smith’s concerns about rising crime in Calgary as he, too, expressed concerns about the change.
“I think we need to reduce our spending on capital and increase our spending on safety and security of Calgarians, that’s a critical piece for a city with our rising crime rates,” Chabot said.
Naheed Nenshi said the police “probably” need more officers on the streets, but said giving the police service more money won’t necessarily ensure public safety.
“Will they get an increase in the November budget? Probably. Will there need to be more boots on the ground? Probably,” Nenshi said.
“But that is not the whole solution, and any candidate who just says, ‘Give the police even more than they’re asking for,’ is asking for big trouble in the budget and not really ensuring community safety.”
Solo patrols isn’t something new to the CPS, and when the downtown pilot project rolled out, the force said it was confident the decision wouldn’t put any officers in danger. It said sergeants have directives to send two-person cars if a situation warrants it.
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