As much as Denver needs more cops on patrol, they only can do so much without more patrol cars — now sorely lacking.
As The Gazette reported over the weekend, Denver police are confronted with the need to maintain aging equipment, replace worn vehicles and control department overtime spending — without being able to expect any additional funds amid a tight city budget. In particular, the Police Department has too many vehicles out of service and too few mechanics to fix them.
The department has added 70 to 75 sworn officers over the last two years, but there aren’t always enough operable cruisers for each of them to police the streets. Often enough, two patrol officers will ride in one car…