By Ruth Longoria

You might have noticed the stylin’ new blue patrol cars making their way around the Island in recent weeks. One-by-one, the Mercer Island Police Department has replaced five of its patrol cars — that’s all but one — with 2005 dark blue Ford Crown Victorias.

The color of the cars is similar to that of vehicles driven by officers in Renton, Tukwila, Kirkland and other cities around the area, said Police Sergeant Marc A. Marcroft, whose new blue vehicle will be the last to arrive. It was expected a month ago, but is being updated with new equipment and should get here any day now, he said.

“I can’t wait, it’ll be nice,” Marcroft said of the blue Chevrolet Tahoe that will replace the white Dodge Durango he currently drives.

The blue cars now match the Island’s Marine Patrol vehicle, something Marcroft is used to driving from his nearly 15 years working with that part of the Island’s law enforcement. Marcroft joined the Island police in 1990 and went from Marine Patrol to a patrol supervisor in January.

In addition to being aesthetically pleasing, Marcroft said, the blue color makes it easier for officers to drive around at night without attracting attention while pursuing burglars and car prowlers.

And, though the outside of the vehicles tend to get hotter when the temperature rises, the cars are air conditioned, so excessive heat shouldn’t be a problem, he said.

The department replaces police cars about every three years, due to wear-and-tear on the vehicles, he said. “The cars get pretty beat up in that amount of time because they are driven 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” he said.

In addition to a new color, the new vehicles have some exciting new amenities. They are equipped with mobile data units — computers — so officers can access records without having to wait for dispatch to check driver information. “Having the information available without having to wait when dispatch gets busy is going to be a big help,” Marcroft said.

However, the additional equipment in the vehicles is a challenge for some officers, such as Officer Manny Rucker, who has been with Mercer Island Police department for 31 years.

“I’m getting used to it, but it’s a little cramped,” Rucker said of the front seat of his vehicle, which Marcroft now refers to as resembling the cockpit of an airplane. The computer takes up much of the space between and in front of the center of the front seat.

“For those of us bigger guys it’s going to take some time and getting used to,” Rucker said.

But benefits should outweigh inconveniences, he said. Another advantage to the new vehicles, is that they are less likely to be vandalized.

“We’ve had a lot of vandalism with the white cars, they just seem to be more out there for that sort of thing,” he said. “The blue cars are more subdued.”