Safety Program Gets New Wheels

At 6’6” tall, it’s a tight squeeze for Dave Ferber, College of Saint Mary’s director of safety and security, to get in theUniversity’s new patrol vehicle. But it’s a sacrifice he’ll gladly make to quicken his response time to someone in need.

The new “egg mobile,” as students commonly call it, allows Ferber and his seven-member security team to patrol the 25-acre CSM campus in bitter cold temperatures with high-beam lighting. And unlike a standard security truck, the Polaris Global Electric Motorcar (GEM) navigates narrow sidewalks and parking lots with ease.

The motorcar can travel up to 27 miles per hour on an eight-hour battery that takes about an hour to recharge.

“It’s important for us to utilize an eco-friendly mode of transportation that doesn’t leave much of a carbon footprint,” said Ferber.