I was assigned to Transit Police District One, located in the subway station at the Columbus Avenue subway station. I happened to be assigned to patrol that station one day, when a train pulled in blowing a "Long-short, long-short" whistle, which meant that a police prescence was needed. It turned out that a woman who wanted to commit suicide-by-subway-train (not unusual) jumped to the tracks as the train entered the station. I responded, used my radio to have the transit authority remove power to the "Third rail", for the protection of the would-be suicide attempter and myself. When I was on the trackbed attempting to tend to the woman, I was suddenly joined by my captain, wearing his silk sharkskin suit - and his name was George Latimer, who is seen promininently in this video. He was known as "Chicken George" only for the fact that he raised chickens, and certainly not for his heroic assistance. After about 4 decades or so, it's good to see him again, even if just in a YT video.
This is a question that I have pondered -- why does the NYC Transit Police not patrol ON the subway trains; just outside of them? I'm not from NYC but I used to visit it very frequently in the early 2000's. I only saw NYC police on board.
Idk if you'll ever see this but if you do I'd like to ask, with no offense meant, but why transit police? That doesn't seem like the most glamorous of positions, though of course very important. So why there? Thanks in advance!
@chipjumper The Transit Police and Housing Police merged with the New York City Police Department in the 1990's. So the uniforms are now the same. The officers you saw on board may have been assigned to the transit bureau.
“The front seats will be clad in cloth which is better than vinyl, more breathable, comfortable and more aesthetically pleasing than vinyl 100%; the rear seats that will transport prisoners will be vinyl” These videos are great!
It's got a cop motor, a 440 cubic inch plant, it's got cop tires, cop suspensions, cop shocks. It's a model made before catalytic converters so it'll run good on regular gas.
@@RoadCone411 Well, you could get options which made them more luxurious. I know my neighbors was pretty nice inside. My father almost bought it from him.
That Caprice was a great unit. In 91 the body style was changed to the inverted bathtub that was Fugly, but still a great unit. The best Caprice I drove was the 94 with the 5.7 LT1 powertrain. Some of the guys on my squad got theirs up to 140 and the unit was solid at high speeds. We had no problem keeping up with Mustangs and Firebirds, and criminals thought twice about running from the PD and SO when being chased by one of these.
@@0159ralph the late 80s Chevy & Ford LTD were the best. I would love to have an 89 Caprice & do a PIT on a Brand new Vet or mustang watch it open it up like a tuna can.
I drove both the 88 chevy and ford and both were horrible! The chevy thru transmissions and the ford's over heated while idling! Both had horrible seats
I drove both for those years and both were junk! The ford's did hold up better but I would take today's explorer. Way way way more comfortable for 12 hrs shifts and they don't over heat.
@25yrsotj no way I drove them for 20 yrs and the seats did not have the technology for a 8 to 12 hr shift! I had 3 back surgeries because of those seats
I trained on the Chevy Caprice 9C1 police cars when I got hired by the Portland Polive Bureau in 1991. They were decent cars. They felt fast-ish for what they were, they handled well, they were easy to see out of, they had large trunks, decent rear seat space, and were easy to get in and out of. I've never been to New York City, but I can't imagine choosing Suburbans to use in heavy city traffic.
Say what you want about the USPS, but our Grumman LLV’s were just coming on line service then and will be in many places for several years to come. I love asking the new hires: “How old are you?” “I just turned 23.” “Well the truck you’re driving today is 10 years older than you.”
And it caused a big issue between Transit and the NYPD. From what I was told transit was not allowed to use the NYPD range after the switchover and had to use either Nassau or Suffolk range to qualify.
@@gregorybentley5707 At the time the NYPD did not want to switch over to semi autos for a variety of insane reasons and IIRC the logic is if we're not doing it then nobody else should. When the NYPD switched in 1993 they implemented a 12 lb trigger pull and went with the Glock 19 instead of the 17 due to slightly less magazine capacity.
@The718Motorpoo bear in mind, this is also the same department that didn't allow officers to use speedloaders until the mid 80s. Just about everyone in the PD ignored it, especially in the busiest commands, but there were white shirts that busted balls about it. Oddly enough, you were authorized a semi automatic weapon off duty on your badge, some guys, my dad included, had their backup weapons on their duty belts. Dad had a Browning Hi-power. So did our family friend, a cop I'll refer to as Howdy Doody.
@@The718MotorpoolThe few NYPD officers who transferred to my job, weren’t well trained in their firearms. They learned how to field strip the Department issued Glock 19 and become proficient with their firearm. I heard the NYPD authorized the G17 pistol which use a 15 round magazine. I guess they want to save money on ammunition.
First patrol vehicle I ever drove in 1993. Drive a F-150 Responder and will retire driving it…. Drove Crown Vic’s, Torpedo Caprice’s, two models of Charger’s, and Explorers in-between. Explorer best pursuit with the Ecoboost V6…Responder most room. Department never bought a Tahoe.
@@afcgeo882 It's also the reason why I mistook them for Fire Vehicles instead of Police Vehicles when I first visited NYC 20 Years ago, when I am from all of our Police Vehicles are Blue/White Lights including the Unmarked Vehicles too.
@@DreadWing7777 Yes. All emergency vehicles in NY are required to use red lights. Blues are for volly fire and green for volly ambulance, but those lights aren’t emergency and you’re not required to pull over for them.
Seeing WTC twin towers still makes my breath catch. Is interesting seeing the early days of modernizing LE. Spund of the accent, the cars, amd even the sound of the sirens is flashback to my childhood. No i didnt live in the city but living in another city in ny we always knew ppl from downstate and any movie or tv show based in NYC when i was a kid left me marveling at my downstate brethren. I dont marvel at them any more. I used to enjoy trips to the city but dont any more......
@@The718Motorpool Bratton later on went to become the Los Angeles Police Chief. He was having difficulty with the Beretta 92F during range qualification and authorized the Glock pistol. Even though he was anti gun, he brought improvements to patrol.
I was assigned to Transit Police District One, located in the subway station at the Columbus Avenue subway station. I happened to be assigned to patrol that station one day, when a train pulled in blowing a "Long-short, long-short" whistle, which meant that a police prescence was needed.
It turned out that a woman who wanted to commit suicide-by-subway-train (not unusual) jumped to the tracks as the train entered the station. I responded, used my radio to have the transit authority remove power to the "Third rail", for the protection of the would-be suicide attempter and myself.
When I was on the trackbed attempting to tend to the woman, I was suddenly joined by my captain, wearing his silk sharkskin suit - and his name was George Latimer, who is seen promininently in this video. He was known as "Chicken George" only for the fact that he raised chickens, and certainly not for his heroic assistance.
After about 4 decades or so, it's good to see him again, even if just in a YT video.
This is a question that I have pondered -- why does the NYC Transit Police not patrol ON the subway trains; just outside of them? I'm not from NYC but I used to visit it very frequently in the early 2000's. I only saw NYC police on board.
@@chipjumper As a matter of fact, there was a time when there was a cop assigned to each train, and that's how I met wife #2.
Idk if you'll ever see this but if you do I'd like to ask, with no offense meant, but why transit police? That doesn't seem like the most glamorous of positions, though of course very important. So why there?
Thanks in advance!
@chipjumper The Transit Police and Housing Police merged with the New York City Police Department in the 1990's. So the uniforms are now the same. The officers you saw on board may have been assigned to the transit bureau.
The classic NY accent, slowly fading.
I was in Manhattan and Brooklyn this past week. I was surprised not to hear the accent - sad!
The first guy is from Boston, with a heavy Boston accent.
@@afcgeo882 That would be William Bratton. Commissioner of NYPD at the time, he was also commissioner of Boston PD and Chief of LAPD.
The accent moved to Long Island, Staten Island, and New Jersey
@@chpman2013 I know.
“The front seats will be clad in cloth which is better than vinyl, more breathable, comfortable and more aesthetically pleasing than vinyl 100%; the rear seats that will transport prisoners will be vinyl” These videos are great!
It's got a cop motor, a 440 cubic inch plant, it's got cop tires, cop suspensions, cop shocks. It's a model made before catalytic converters so it'll run good on regular gas.
My Blues Brother😎
You traded the Bluesmobile for this?
@@ronaldkonkoma4356 "no, for a microphone."
Transit Police?
How often does that train go by?
But does it have SCMODS? 🤣
This generation of Caprice was an awesome car. I knew people who had them. Surprisingly, for a Chevrolet, it was actually somewhat luxurious inside.
Not the ones I was in!
@@RoadCone411 Well, you could get options which made them more luxurious. I know my neighbors was pretty nice inside. My father almost bought it from him.
Yeah those full-size sedans were very plush and quite luxurious with the right options.
LS Brougham especially!
@@LCR 👍
Everybody can argue with me on this statement but that is the greatest Whelen light bar that ever was made.
We had the Street Hawks. They were OK but were a little high when mounted on the roof. They impacted the units high speed by creating some drag.
@@0159ralph oh yes the fedsig street hawk. If not for the light bar the smart vector would not exist.
Smith and Wesin made a light bar in the 1980s for nypd mopars
@@robertnussberger6449 do you remember how absolutely got awful heavy that thing was they made it out of solid stained glass
@@AlexanderM-h3b the s and w were plexiglass with a turning spotlights inside
Best. Caprice. Ever.
That's what I was driving when I started out.
That Caprice was a great unit. In 91 the body style was changed to the inverted bathtub that was Fugly, but still a great unit. The best Caprice I drove was the 94 with the 5.7 LT1 powertrain. Some of the guys on my squad got theirs up to 140 and the unit was solid at high speeds. We had no problem keeping up with Mustangs and Firebirds, and criminals thought twice about running from the PD and SO when being chased by one of these.
@@0159ralph the late 80s Chevy & Ford LTD were the best. I would love to have an 89 Caprice & do a PIT on a Brand new Vet or mustang watch it open it up like a tuna can.
@@AlexanderM-h3b no need for driver extraction...
I drove both the 88 chevy and ford and both were horrible! The chevy thru transmissions and the ford's over heated while idling! Both had horrible seats
Comparing the Caprice with 1992-1997 Crown Vic, which one is waaaay better?
Is that Bratton!?! He came over to my neck of the woods and cleaned up the LAPD.
@@MD-on9fi the one and only
And then he came back to New York and served as police commissioner.
RIP George Latimer, July, 2020.
Dont you mean Jawg Latima....RIP
Back in the day when they made real police cars !
I drove both for those years and both were junk! The ford's did hold up better but I would take today's explorer. Way way way more comfortable for 12 hrs shifts and they don't over heat.
@@JH-tg3qgconsidering most transit cops were on foot and the tours were 8.35, those cars were good !
@25yrsotj no way I drove them for 20 yrs and the seats did not have the technology for a 8 to 12 hr shift! I had 3 back surgeries because of those seats
@@JH-tg3qg when I got on in 91 we had those exact cars and also had 2 brand new 91 impalas, being in any car beat walking the A or J train !
@@25yrsotj horrible compared to what they drive today.
That jam is vibin', especially for 1990 lol - Awesome find. Great content on this channel, looking forward to more!
I like the Whelen Advantedge bars with the low pro speaker.
I would kill to have one in my collection
@@The718Motorpool You and me both buddy. I have an NYPD vision, but that's as close to NYCTP as I've got.
I trained on the Chevy Caprice 9C1 police cars when I got hired by the Portland Polive Bureau in 1991. They were decent cars. They felt fast-ish for what they were, they handled well, they were easy to see out of, they had large trunks, decent rear seat space, and were easy to get in and out of.
I've never been to New York City, but I can't imagine choosing Suburbans to use in heavy city traffic.
The caprice was a god tier police car back then. They out performed everything else on the market except the Mustang SSP
Say what you want about the USPS, but our Grumman LLV’s were just coming on line service then and will be in many places for several years to come.
I love asking the new hires:
“How old are you?”
“I just turned 23.”
“Well the truck you’re driving today is 10 years older than you.”
Oh man I would love to have that GMC RMP!
Please go back in time and have that tow truck driver deliver it to my house... 😁
I Have 2 Caprice (Shoebox) Cruisers!!!! Both Are 1989 Models!!! One is White & 1 is Blue!!
I just wanted to hear them say the word “caprice”
Those good old days.
Until NYC Transit and NYC Housing Authority PD were merged with NYPD in 1995 and upgraded with Ford Crown Victoria and Chevy Caprice Impala.
A lot of the transit and housing cars were repainted and in service until the late 90s
Talk to any old housing or transit cop, and they’ll tell you: It wasn’t a merge it was a hostile takeover!
@@The718Motorpool And now they're going back to SUVs.
They had Glocks years before NYPD
And it caused a big issue between Transit and the NYPD. From what I was told transit was not allowed to use the NYPD range after the switchover and had to use either Nassau or Suffolk range to qualify.
@@The718Motorpool why would NYPD not want them using their range after the switch?
@@gregorybentley5707 At the time the NYPD did not want to switch over to semi autos for a variety of insane reasons and IIRC the logic is if we're not doing it then nobody else should. When the NYPD switched in 1993 they implemented a 12 lb trigger pull and went with the Glock 19 instead of the 17 due to slightly less magazine capacity.
@The718Motorpoo bear in mind, this is also the same department that didn't allow officers to use speedloaders until the mid 80s. Just about everyone in the PD ignored it, especially in the busiest commands, but there were white shirts that busted balls about it. Oddly enough, you were authorized a semi automatic weapon off duty on your badge, some guys, my dad included, had their backup weapons on their duty belts. Dad had a Browning Hi-power. So did our family friend, a cop I'll refer to as Howdy Doody.
@@The718MotorpoolThe few NYPD officers who transferred to my job, weren’t well trained in their firearms. They learned how to field strip the Department issued Glock 19 and become proficient with their firearm. I heard the NYPD authorized the G17 pistol which use a 15 round magazine. I guess they want to save money on ammunition.
I remember when the law in my town got 6 1990 caprice 9C1 the best car ever made good video
Hey Chief Bratton. Still waiting for my leather jacket.
He assigned it to some LAPD P2 in the Hollenbeck division 😂
As on the next year - a new Caprice generation was been released.
Crazy to me that they were using Suburbans in NYC in the 1st place lol
Surely there was a better option even before the Caprices
Probably had more to do with the Transit as a whole bought these trucks by the hundreds every year. Prior to those they had 1980 or 81 Gran Furies
I really enjoy your videos keep up the videos
Thanks! I have a lot more planned so be sure to subscribe
I still miss the 1974 Dodge Coronet 440 Magnum that I drove with the San Diego Sheriffs Department.
First patrol vehicle I ever drove in 1993. Drive a F-150 Responder and will retire driving it…. Drove Crown Vic’s, Torpedo Caprice’s, two models of Charger’s, and Explorers in-between. Explorer best pursuit with the Ecoboost V6…Responder most room. Department never bought a Tahoe.
Last year for this body style. I know the next generation had the better engine and was faster but always liked the look of this car.
@@thud9797 it took 3 years to get the better engine. The LO5 was still kicking until 1993. Both my 9c1 cars have the LO5
@@The718Motorpool
Is that shoulder belt mount at the top of the door? Think only 1990 looks like that.
@@thud9797 yeah, it was a poorly design because if the door was compromised it could be fatal
Wow they should have waited one more year lol
That's a really cool paint job on the hood. I wonder what happened to this color changing paint technology?
2:07
And now we have officers in RMPs eating the damn steering wheel
YUM YUM MY FAVORITE SNACK, FORD EXPLORER STEERING WHEEL
Good, but also sad, to see the Twin Towers in the background there. Seems like a different time altogether, but it's still New York! 💙🏣
NYC a changed so much during the 90s up until 9/11. I am lucky to have grown up in 90s NYC and being exposed to so much culture.
Nice paint job on those cruisers.
They went from suv to car now back to suv
Who thought the Suburban would be a good choice for any kind of patrol duty in NYC??
Transit bought these by the hundred back then, If it wasnt going to Transit PD it was probably going to some other part of the transit system
Vests were still optional, and Black Talons were everywhere on the street and could defeat them anyway~
Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't that first officer have more of a Boston accent?
@@stevenyou That was Chief Bratton who was originally from boston
depAATmint
There is a little bit of irony in bragging about these 'new' cars that were in their 13th and final year of production haha.
89/90 was when those cars were perfected
@@The718Motorpoolthose cars were very quick ! I won’t say that they were tested on the interboro by D33 ! 😂
I wonder what happened to these vehicles after the absorption by the NYPD.
I believe all the 90s were long gone but the later caprices, and the crown vics were repainted and were in service until the late 90s
Police Depawtmant...😂
I wonder why NYPD stuck with red/white lights instead of the standard red/blue.
Blue lights aren’t emergency lights in New York and there is no standard nationwide. Each state sets its own.
And blue lights to the rear were only authorized in 2008
@@afcgeo882 It's also the reason why I mistook them for Fire Vehicles instead of Police Vehicles when I first visited NYC 20 Years ago, when I am from all of our Police Vehicles are Blue/White Lights including the Unmarked Vehicles too.
@@DreadWing7777 Yes. All emergency vehicles in NY are required to use red lights. Blues are for volly fire and green for volly ambulance, but those lights aren’t emergency and you’re not required to pull over for them.
Does the New York State Police still use all red?
... Who gets the Biggest Kick Back 😂😂😂😂... USA! USA!.... GREEEEEEEEETINGS FROM MONACO ⛵🏝️
All of them cars probably suffered a horrible fate lol
Your dad probably shaved with them in 1994
@@The718Motorpool could very well be
Never knew the NYC transit police was run by Boston...
The caprice has automatic seat belts.
Hallo, Guten Tag, was does RMP mean?
Radio Motor Patrol it’s the NYPD technical term for marked police cars.
No Google in Germany?
@@twinsonic Hallo guten Abend, i googled it but it showed me several different things that doesnt make sense. Like Royal Military Police.
3:09 yeah I’m sure that phrase aged well 😅😅😅😅
Seeing WTC twin towers still makes my breath catch.
Is interesting seeing the early days of modernizing LE. Spund of the accent, the cars, amd even the sound of the sirens is flashback to my childhood. No i didnt live in the city but living in another city in ny we always knew ppl from downstate and any movie or tv show based in NYC when i was a kid left me marveling at my downstate brethren. I dont marvel at them any more. I used to enjoy trips to the city but dont any more......
Funny how they’ve gone back to SUVs
I know they're from NY but that accent is Boston. Weird.
Old RMPs? Fugedaboutit
Great video.
Thanks for posting.
Bill Bratton later NYPD chief under Mayor Giuliani
Bratton was never the NYPD Chief, he was the commissioner.
@@The718Motorpool Bratton later on went to become the Los Angeles Police Chief.
He was having difficulty with the Beretta 92F during range qualification and authorized the Glock pistol. Even though he was anti gun, he brought improvements to patrol.
De pah ment
I would keep the suburban over a caprice any day.
The problem was the suburbans were in rough shape, and few and far between. However, they did purchase them again and 90 or 91 with the new livery.
It's always sad to see the twin towers still Standing knowing what's going to happen.🇬🇧😢❤️
Rat @ 3:43 in bottom left screen haha
IAB had to make an appearance
That guy has a heavy Alabama accent. Wow,
Junk cars and equipmet
I think you're the one that is junk