Police cop for Sprinters

Date: Monday, September 7, 2009

Fourteen Mercedes-Benz Sprinter minibuses specially adapted to police requirements by MacNeillie & Son of Walsall are now in service with Lancashire Constabulary. Each capable of seating nine officers and grossing at 5.0 tonnes the 518CDI Long models are all fitted with 184hp V6 diesel engines and automatic transmissions.

Polycarbonate linings have been installed to strengthen the bodywork. Each minibus is also equipped with anti-bandit glass, a retractable metal grille to defend the windscreen from missiles, run-flat tyres and protected fuel lines. Other features include racking to hold shields and helmets.

Supplied through Preston dealer Ciceley Commercials, the newcomers replace nine-year-old Sprinters which have clocked up an average of 100,000 miles each. They’re being used by specialist support units that may be drafted in at short notice to aid local officers. The units may be called on to assist during drug raids, to be present at demonstrations and to help control crowds at football matches.

Sticking in the north, a 4x4 Sprinter playing a dual role as both an ambulance and a personnel carrier in the Lake District National Park is on 24-hour emergency standby with Keswick Mountain Rescue Team. A Medium-bodied 315CDI, it was supplied through the Carlisle branch of Ciceley Commercials and equipped to ambulance specifications by specialist converter Alan Smallwood of Barnoldswick, Lancashire.

Further north, a pair of Sprinter 311CDIs Long chassis cabs sourced through Broxburn dealer Western Commercial and fitted with Ingimex dropside bodies have joined Stirlingshire company Class One Traffic Management. They’re being used to deliver portable traffic lights and traffic cones to sites all over Scotland. Class One specialises in managing lane closures and contraflow systems on motorways and trunk roads.

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