Thames Valley Police has become the first force in the UK to introduce a marked all terrain utility vehicle into its fleet.
The new vehicle, a high-performance and Kubota RTVX900, is designed to handle any terrain, even in the toughest of conditions. This means the police will now to able to get to remote and challenging rural areas that were previously difficult to access.
Thames Valley Police do a lot of work to combat rural crime and approached Kubota, which has its UK headquarters at Thame, to see if the organisations could work in partnership.
“Crime in rural Oxfordshire can range from theft of agricultural and construction plant and machinery, to wildlife crimes like hare coursing and poaching, the theft of diesel and also staddle stones,” Superintendent Kath Lowe said.
“A serious issue for us has been getting to crime scenes because of how remote they are. Before now, our only vehicles were Panda cars, which are fine on the road, but don’t have the capabilities for tackling rough off road terrain!
“With this new Kubota RTVX900 in our fleet, we’ll now be able to reach a much higher percentage of rural crimes than ever before. This is going to help us to further improve the service we can provide our local community.
“Our goal is to ensure that all the communities we serve have the confidence that Thames Valley Police are working hard to prevent rural crime and that if they are affected, they can report it and appropriate action will be taken.”
Thames Valley Police’s new Kubota vehicle is completely unique in the policing industry. It’s the first time any UK police force has had a fully operational and marked all-terrain vehicle in their fleet.
For more information visit: www.kubota.co.uk.
