This troubling budget and economic time call for drastic measures. As most Troy residents often see, the Troy Police cruising the Interstate stopping speeders, assisting disabled vehicles and handling accidents accounting for at a conservative estimate 10% of daily call volume.  What residents also fail to realize is that the Interstate police function that Troy often provides is not mandatory simply because I-75 runs through Troy.

Did you know that departments like Madison Heights, Pittsfield Township and Detroit do not routinely handle any calls for service related to the Interstate. Yes, that is right they refer all calls to the freeway to the Michigan State Police dispatch center for MSP troopers to handle thus reducing officer time and expense handling matters that are not a necessity for their agency to supply.  All that would be required to do this is the Chief to issue a directive to dispatchers to forward all calls for service to the state police on I-75 and Troy officers only provide mutual aid to the MSP troopers when asked. This simple action would reduce department expense investigating traffic crashes, fatal accidents, disabled vehicles, motorist assists, traffic enforcement manpower and other functions that draw from city coffers without one for one reimbursement. This action would also allow the department to function better with less staffing as is projected in the July 2010 layoffs. The chief could direct officers to patrol surface street, subdivisions and industrial parks and leave the interstate to MSP.