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Dubai Officially Has the Most Wicked Emergency Service Cars

Dubai is truly the promised land: it is the place opulence calls home, where everything is higher, faster and more luxurious. In Dubai, even emergency services are unlike those in the rest of the world.
Dubai Police has a separate fleet of supercars 9 photos
Photo: khaleejtimes.com
Dubai Police have been building their supecar fleet since 2013Many female police officers in Dubai get to drive the department's supercarsThe Dubai PD aims to be "the most progressive" taskforceDubai PD supercars on paradeDubai police supercars are mostly used for PRThe ambulance service in Dubai also got its very own couple of supercarsDubai ambulance service also boasts female staffThe Nissan GT-R and Chevrolet C7 Corvette Grand Sport that will be used as ambulances in Dubai
Some years ago, the Dubai police started introducing supercars into their standard fleet, so now they have an entirely separate fleet made up of this type of cars. Come to think of it, it makes sense to have police in the same kind of supercar as those seen on the roads on the regular. After all, if you’re going to catch a bad guy and he’s driving a monster of a car, you have to catch him first, right?

Fast cars are a common sight in Dubai, but they still elicit a strong response from tourists. It might make sense to put cops in similarly fast and expensive rides in order to bring them on an equal footing to supposed criminals, but that’s not the reason why the Dubai Police Force has such an impressive fleet of supercars.

In reality, it’s all down to PR. As the PD put it a while back, they had to come up with something to bridge the gap between police officers and the wealthiest tourists and residents, and they also wanted to get some good publicity for the department. Obviously, you can’t do the latter if you show up in a beat-up, dusty and rusty patrol car.

So they invested in the most expensive, fastest rides out there, the kind you’re bound to stop and gawk at when you see them. As of this moment, the Dubai PD’s special fleet includes an Aston Martin One-77, a Bentley Bentayga, a Bugatti Veyron, an Audi R8, BMW i8 and M6, Ferrari FF, Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, several Lamborghini Aventadors, Lexus RC F, one McLaren MP4-12C, a Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid, and a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, to name just a few. They also have a several motorcycles and one Hoversurf Scorpion 3 Hoverbike.

The Dubai PD aims to be "the most progressive" taskforce
Photo: carcility.com
Many of these vehicles are paraded at malls and in certain tourist hotspots, where officers will stop to engage with the crowd, posing for pictures with and without the cars. They’re also used to tackle actual criminals, but don’t expect to see them at crash sites or doing traffic stops: reports claim that they’re used only to catch the most hardened criminals. You don’t get to hitch a ride in one of these special patrol cars if you’re just a mere burglar or something.

The Dubai PD aims to be and takes proud in being called the “most progressive” task force in the Middle East. All their cops are either law graduates or are in the process of getting their diplomas, and they seem to have found the perfect balance towards integrating female officers into the taskforce. Some of them even get to drive these beauties around.

In addition to the PD fleet of supercars, the Dubai Corporation for Ambulance Service also has 2 such cars in its fleet, as of October 2019. First responders get a Nissan GT-R and a Chevrolet C7 Corvette Grand Sport, which will be used to shorten the response time by 4 to 8 minutes – and for some good PR as well. How’s that for putting the “rapid” in “rapid response”?

The Nissan GT\-R and Chevrolet C7 Corvette Grand Sport that will be used as ambulances in Dubai
Photo: Facebook / Dubai Corporation For Ambulance Services
Unlike with the police cars, which presumably can be “enjoyed” by those hardened criminals on their way to HQ, the superfast police ambulances are only for medical personnel. They will not be modified and equipped to transport patients (for the obvious reasons), but only first responders on their way to a call. Seeing how, in medical emergencies, a few seconds can make the difference between life and death, getting one paramedic and some equipment to the scene faster by at least 4 minutes will potentially save many lives.

When they’re not out taking calls, the superfast new ambulances will also be paraded around tourist areas, but whether staff inside will be as engaging as their mates in the police remains to be seen.

The choices for Dubai’s emergency service cars have prompted many comments of the type “too much money and too little sense.” That may apply, but it’s also an example of how state budget can be used to adapt to the ever-changing urban environment, and a master class in excellent PR and successful use of social media.

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About the author: Elena Gorgan
Elena Gorgan profile photo

Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends.
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