Austin Police Get New BAT Mobile
DUI enforcement officers in Austin, Texas have a new "toy" that is pretty impressive – assuming the streets of Austin are teeming with drunken drivers. Otherwise it may seem to be a little over the top.
It is called the BAT Mobile and the BAT stands for "Breath Alcohol Testing." The BAT Mobile is a custom made 38-foot recreational vehicle and now serves as a key part of the DUI enforcement team in the city, according to a report by KLBJ News.
The mobile breath test vehicle is equipped with everything Austin police officers need to process a Texas DUI investigation. There are two monitors and video playback units so that the dash cam videos can be reviewed, desks so that the officers can sit comfortably to process paperwork and write their reports, space for Texas DUI suspects to sit and wait and of course the breath test machine to screen Texas DUI suspects.
The new BAT Mobile is a step up from the older and smaller van that the Austin police department had used in the past and is named in honor of two police officers who were tragically killed in the line of duty by drunken drivers.
The rolling breath test RV came with a hefty price tag of $250,000 and hit the streets of Austin courtesy of Capital Metro through an interlocal agreement. Austin police officers say that the BAT Mobile will reduce and streamline paperwork and allow them to get back on the road quicker after processing Texas DUI arrests, thus allowing them to catch more DUI suspects.
