Canada’s Mounties Are Giving Police Cruisers Their First New Look In Over 30 Years

If you live in Canada or are traveling through, you may soon start to notice that local police cars look a little different. Eager to “improve visibility,” the Royal Canadian Mounted Police have started to paint patrol cars in a combination of black and white, a dramatic departure from the white used previously.

While we’re not convinced the new look will improve visibility as the RCMP says, the livery isn’t dissimilar to what you’ll find in many states south of the border in the US. As shown on a Ford Explorer, the new look sees the front bumper, hood, and quarter panels finished in black, whereas the doors have a gleaming white finish.

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The black continues across the rear of the patrol vehicles. Adding a little bit of color are bright blue ‘Police’ scripts on the doors and the RCMP’s iconic logo, now larger and more prominent than ever. Local authorities note these graphics are reflective, so they should be easy to spot at night.

Local provinces, territories, and municipalities will be able to include their own distinctive touches to the updated livery. Importantly, Canada won’t waste money immediately applying the new look to all of its patrol vehicles. Instead, current vehicles will retain the old livery until they are ready to be replaced, and the black-and-white finish will be added to their successors.

The first of the new-look vehicles will start to hit the roads later this summer. This represents the first livery change for the RCMP in more than 30 years.

“This new look prioritizes visibility and public safety,” RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme said. “It ensures our vehicles are instantly recognizable as police – in any community and in any circumstance – while respecting the RCMP’s long-standing identity and proud history serving communities across the country.”