There Is a Reason Why Police Cars Are Black and White

When you hear a police siren blaring around the corner, you’re already expecting to see a sedan painted in certain colors rushing past you. But have you ever wondered why exactly police cars are painted in colors they use? In fact, there are plenty of reasons for that in any given country.
Let’s take the USA and Canada for example. When first North American police cars appeared in the early 1900s, pretty much all automobiles were painted black, and law enforcers weren’t any exception. Later, most authorities across the US thought it prudent to make police cars easily recognizable to the public. And so they worked out a color palette that would be both symbolic and affordable for the budget.
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TIMESTAMPS:
Police of the USA and Canada 🚔 0:21
The British traffic police car (aka “jam sandwich”) 2:09
What the Battenburg markings are 2:37
The Czech Republic 4:14
Dubai (the most visible police cars!) 5:07
More subtle differences in police cars from regular ones 5:46
Vehicles designed for pursuit 6:24
👉 The only real advantage of the police cars 👈 7:28
#police #cars #brightside
Preview photo credit:
USA. FLORIDA. MIAMI BEACH. APRIL - 14, 2017: POLICE CAR: By SergeevDen/Shutterstock.com, www.shutterstock.com/image-ph...
Animation is created by Bright Side.
SUMMARY:
- A monochrome design proved to be very efficient: people would instantly recognize a police car as such, and it was also not hard to give it another paint job in case it was given to a detective or an undercover officer.
- With the appearance of vinyl decals, however, it became increasingly easy to paint a car in whatever colors you wanted.
- Originally, most police cars in Europe and the UK were white with distinct markings on them in either black, blue, or red.
- But then, in the 1990s, the revolution came: the Battenburg markings. Developed in the UK, this distinct pattern became a standard for the British, Australian, and many of the European police cars.
- The markings look like alternating squares of two different colors - kinda like a chess board.
- The reason for such a radical redesign is simple enough: making the emergency services highly visible.
- Only the emergency services are allowed to bear them, which makes these vehicles immediately recognizable even in the heavy traffic.
- In the Czech Republic, for example, most police vehicles have striped decals running along the bottom of the side of the car.
- When light-reflecting stripes are put lower on the body of a car, they always get enough light to be seen for what they are.
- But probably the most visible police cars ever reside in Dubai. The police force in that wealthy city has perhaps the most expensive set of vehicles in the world.
- Dubai creates a picture of the richest and most luxurious city in the world, and having their police officers drive around in Lamborghinis and Ferraris does a lot to add to this image.
- Police vehicles are generally more powerful than those available to the public. All around the world, governments place special orders for their police cars.
- There’s one thing the police have that makes almost every car chase a success: communication. And that’s the only real advantage of the police cars.
Music by Epidemic Sound www.epidemicsound.com/
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[@BRIGHTSIDEOFFICIAL]

Hey there! How do police cars look in your country?

[@renebaebae6589]

White, blue and red for highway and gray and yellow for Sherrief and city police

[@maraakvo]

Blue and white or blue and yellow

[@aashishawadhani6679]

They are white with police written on them that's it no stripe nothing but just siren and lights on the roof.

[@xxwfgamerxx3178]

Aw I feel so bad u only have 4 comments and 1 like I gave u another like :)

[@zyruscoronado9541]

Combination of all nation

[@adamrtr2774]

Who all wants to see crown vics back

[@NikoBellaKhouf]

Me, Crown Vics are awesome

[@Jerms995]

Vics can’t catch up to newer cars

[@carlthefriendlyllama2126]

@@Jerms995 yep. They were considered slow even when they were new but the ruggedness is what made them such a success.

[@brianlee5649]

I do, as well as Chevy Impalas and Caprices.

[@N7Rueben]

@@brianlee5649 impalas and caprices are still in service they are just extremely rare like the ford torus which is rare becuase it was only made for one year (2013) but lots of police departments have loads of them

[@mrstruggle1664]

Honestly though why am I watching this late at night

[@lautarocasas6]

joanna hernandez same here i was like i gotta go to bed 😂

[@AeroDogMusic]

Lol same bro it’s 11:58PM

[@FrankensteinMarlos]

DUH, because ur awake 😂😂

[@cillian763]

It's 5:22am

[@arnulfobenitez9836]

Me: I got black I got white what you want Cops: both on my car

[@virusspubg5542]

Hop outside a ghost and hop up in a phantom

[@FrostBltezRoblox]

Loo

[@FrostBltezRoblox]

Lol

[@arnulfobenitez9836]

@@FrostBltezRoblox 🤣

[@najamdubai5917]

If a police officer pull me over and say “papers” l will say “scissors” I win and ride off

[@robbiekeske5959]

10/10 would steal joke again

[@itzjay2002]

Good luck your username says “Dubai” and they have a lot of police super cars

[@hankbridges5055]

NAJAM Dubai I hand him my rolling papers! 😂

[@charlescalvindead2324]

NAJAM Dubai Trump has ordered your arresting BAG EM Well -slips cuffs on and throws in cell- that’s what you get

[@BRIGHTSIDEOFFICIAL]

TIMESTAMPS: Police of the USA and Canada 🚔 0:21 The British traffic police car (aka “jam sandwich”) 2:09 What the Battenburg markings are 2:37 The Czech Republic 4:14 Dubai (the most visible police cars!) 5:07 More subtle differences in police cars from regular ones 5:46 Vehicles designed for pursuit 6:24 👉 The only real advantage of the police cars 👈 7:28

[@lubos.horacek]

Hi, ve videu máš drobnou chybu. česká policie co jsi ukázal je town police. Oni mají jiný účel, hlídají veřejný pořádek, dávají pokuty za parkování, přechody pro chodce. A jejich šéf je starosta. Ale máme i regural policii ( dopravní policie) a ti už mají bězné barvy :) Podívej se v google : traffic policie czech

[@Koopatrol2]

@@lubos.horacek Sice si nemyslím že tomu rozumí, ale nevadí :D

[@lubos.horacek]

@@Koopatrol2 no chybicka se vloudila :D psal jsem to pres prekladac a z kopiroval spatnou stranu :D ( proto to je i tak cesky kostrbate aby prekladalo jak chci)

[@Koopatrol2]

@@lubos.horacek :D

[@EM4CZ]

@@lubos.horacek Napsal si mu tam zbytečně moc nedůležitých věcí, jednodušší by bylo tam napsat normálně státní policie a odkaz na správnou fotku, místo toho vysvětlovat mu jak u nás fungujou měšťáci. Oni ty slavný policejní sbory jako je NYPD nebo LAPD jsou když to vezmu podle našeho zákona o obecní policii taky měšťákama, protože státní policajti v americe jsou ti co hlídají na dálnicích, State troopers a Highway Patrol jsou státní. Tvoje angličtina za moc nestojí.

[@invincible201xxx]

I love the random spray he did at 11 seconds smiling lol

[@cordellmebane3752]

That little pun at the end was really funny.

[@JukeboxBalowski]

By the way, with new philosophies regarding patrolling and law enforcement, and the use of the extremely bright flashing LED lights, most of what's being discussed in this video is quickly going out the window. In the town I live in now in NJ, all the police cars are completely jet black with gray lettering which is hard to read during the day, and virtually impossible to see at night. And those are the marked cars I'm talking about! There are also several unmarked cars with no markings at all.

[@100PercentOS2]

Highly visible police cars most definitely have their places when emergencies come up such as a police chase or a fire. But I do see a downside too, in our case, for the Black & Whites. I was really happy that these were brought back into services in my city. But my problem with these cars is people who play loud music and have barking dogs can quickly turn the volume down or get their dogs inside, denying everything and the police not believing those who are being disturb by these noisy neighbors. The police need to plan their routes by taking side streets where they can't be seen instead of driving in front of the houses. In the case of the dog barking all day the police was never able to catch the noisy neighbor until I called again and suggest that they drive down my street where the noisy neighbor would not be the wiser. The police can see the dog in the front yard on a long lease barking it's head off and the dog being allowed to walk across the sidewalk and into the street, both against city ordinance. This noisy neighbor got caught and was given a warning. No one should have to put up with noisy neighbors and the police needs to be smart about catching these noisy neighbors by NOT driving in front of the houses where their cars stick out like sore thumbs.

[@snxw4k]

3:04 Aus highway patrol markings (normally diferent) / Irish police (some places(thx for feedback)) / AUS SES car 3:05 Aus standard markings (modified in states) 3:06 UK standard markings

[@johnfernando5790]

U play Roblox i can tell

[@kazemizu]

It’s our way of showing panda appreciation~

[@NikoBellaKhouf]

🐼😍

[@icewevr]

Niko Bella-Khouf e are ww2

[@dayanandanprasad4192]

Panda. I am makeinh a personal website named Panda Studio

[@dtcomic1758]

Its because black and white was the color of the world in 1950s

[@DingoXBX]

bruh

[@maheshmahi6080]

Lol

[@joeyvanaalst1978]

sounds legit to me tho

[@douggtrad]

It's make much sense lol 😂

[@thetoad8253]

Daniel Thomas lol

[@jacklee4731]

Me: Gets pulled over by cop Cop: I’m about to end this mans whole career

[@rarinth]

In the Philippines, the police cars were white, with blue and red accents. They use old vehicles like the 2007 Vios. But some cars are new like the recent ones

[@bellz9113]

Another fascinating video!

[@rileysmith9843]

The police cars in my town are either black, white, blue or silver. They were black and white, blue and white or just white or blue before 2003, but the solid color was being used even as early as 2001. The black/white and blue/white were slowly phased out from 2004-2010. Reflective markings became the norm in the mid-2000s.

[@Logan.Elliott]

The Australian SES is usually used in, natural disasters, searches for missing people and others. The Aussie police deals with basic things and they have blue with white stripes and the police logo on the lights, and bottom of the doors

[@samarab7175]

Love your videos!

[@maxrain9043]

Please keep making more videos. I love your videos

[@MrWildbill]

Our cops recently went back to black and white, they said they found it was still the most recognizable pattern to being a cop car. They have other colors for certain cars but the routine patrol cars are back to black and white, I have to admit I like it, they are easy to spot.

[@johnlawfourtyfyve]

The black & white color pallet for squad cars came about before they started ordering air conditioning in squad cars. The idea was to paint the roof and doors white to keep the passenger compartment as cool as possible while the hood and trunk painted black to reduce glare from the sun. With tinted glass and AC, it isn't as popular as it used to be but it is still around in a lot of areas.

[@randypennel3731]

I was a medic for 25 years and this bouncing sound you talk about is why alot of counties and even some states banned the use of Hi-lo siren tones.

[@DyingToLive12]

To show that it indeed is black v. White in America!

[@leonsheppard84]

I live in Atlanta where the police cars are mostly blue with a bit of red and a smidge of white.

[@thaliahorta7216]

He’s talking about Los Ángeles 😇 Miami Beach 🏖 and San Francisco 🌉

[@GC-rf2st]

Are you sure? Here in the UK the traditional “panda cars” were developed by swapping blue doors to white cars and their white doors to blue cars it took years before the white cars with the jam stripe came about and the same again for the battenburg markings

[@ProducerLare]

The Michigan State Police is the only agency (in the US at least) that has the color of their cruisers as an actual _factory color_ called _”Michigan State Police Blue”_ This is only available to the agency when ordering new cars... not available to the public; however retired cruisers sold at auction to the public will still don the color.

[@tbone3972]

That last question asked towards the ending was GREAT.... Do buy, or not do buy only in Dubai.

[@2012drnadnan]

I like this video thank you bright side. Anyway what's is your real name

[@eleanormartin2390]

As a former officer the Federal Govt gave police dept's federal grant money to paint their cars black and white. Most dept's now stay with B/W paint scheme same reason for red(emergency) blue(police) lights. All police cars today have same exact engine specs as a taxi, just more electrical power to run lights,siren,strobes,computer,radios,etc.

[@jaycooryoungduece2898]

The Thumbnail Though 😂😂😂.. Locking Up The Closet Ones Huh 😂😂

[@aaynaaayna3906]

Thank for dis video 🚓🚔🇨🇦🇺🇸

[@SensSword]

I'm be curious to fact check this video with my PO tomorrow. I said it gives me a head start, but he says cuz fashion. 🤣 j/k

[@florianwild2791]

In Germany you are allowed to use the Battenberg markings on personal vehicles because here they are used not so much as in the UK sometimes on newer models of Ems vehicles they might be on.

[@ricordo_m7607]

Its glad to see Czech Republic in this video :) thanks :)

[@lippenssdmkkuang4627]

Can you please make some videos about Singapore,I never seen any Singapore videos.

[@aaynaaayna3906]

Thank for doing good video 🚔🚓

[@rubenyoranpc]

Dutch police cars have small reflective cubes all along the profile of the car

[@johnnyjakesman8305]

Black and white looks cool, in the UK our police cars are yellow and blue squares which is not so cool 🚔

[@DKrueger1994]

Warner Robins used to be white with the yellow and blue stripes before they went with the gray and blue letterings, there's even one that has gray and pink lettering, and occasionally, there's even a pink car with black lettering, the Sheriff's Office is black with the gold lettering, but some of the units still have the gray and black lettering, and finally, Georgia State Patrol has the Blue and Gray with the orange lettering. The military police is usually white with blue lettering with the badge of the United States Air Force Security Forces, I've seen a Dodge Ram that is painted blue with silver lettering.

[@mohmmadahmadi7948]

Informative

[@FrankensteinMarlos]

In my country it looks like green and white, DUBAI !! Thank you Bright Side

[@keithrobertsson2164]

Also before A\C was "cheap" the white roof reflected the sun's heart.

[@arnulfobenitez9836]

Oh yeah true

[@theartofmastery3674]

I hope everyone has a great day😊🙏

[@tobyandjenjackson6676]

like the backround music

[@mestupkid689]

There used to be a saying back in the day here in the US. You can outrun the police but you can't outrun Motorola

[@venusdragojlovic4227]

In Australia its blue and white checker board design

[@deffnotami]

Me:seriously the colours are blue and white Like Aussie

[@ineshinpanathan1879]

1:48 who else a Fremont fam

[@mthobisisibiya2398]

8:30 What a pun!!!

[@SgtJoeSmith]

It's got a cop motor, a 440-cubic-inch plant. It's got cop tires, cop suspension, cop shocks. It's a model made before catalytic converters so it'll run good on regular gas.

[@ce8543]

Oh Crikey its the fuzz😅

[@MichielKlaver]

Battenburg has one major dis-advantage: it's less easy to spot what direction an emergency vehicle is headed in the dark. Diagonal stripes however divert surrounding traffic.

[@dcarbs2979]

You tell direction by colour of lights: White headlights opposite direction, red tail / brake lights same direction. If it's on a parallel road to see from the side, you'll probably not see it long enough to need know.

[@banashreedutta5565]

Yes I have been in this kind of situations

[@douggtrad]

In Brazil where I live , the police cars usually are blue or black , but it can vary

[@fortysevenss]

shout out to Saudi Arabia with their green and white cop cars

[@redbread1631]

No one: Wired Bright side intro

[@verityw6721]

Did you know that sometimes you can buy old police cars?? Not as interesting though, because the take off all the equipment, such as the lights and radio, and take off the stickers.

[@HelloKittyFanMan.]

"Police car with its rotating lights on..."? Even now? Since when do they still have those? Didn't strobes replace those long ago?

[@HelloKittyFanMan.]

Rotators can only be a certain distance too, @betatalk357. If they're so much "better" just because of their rotation, then why would anyone have switched to to strobes?

[@lightstar52899]

NYPD cars have rotating lights.

[@JohnWayne-86ed]

They're looking out for the epileptic drivers out there by not using strobe lights.

[@kayjay9383]

Hello Kitty Lover Man! PA, USA still use rollers so as to not set off epileptic people into seizures.

[@nekuriesantos6283]

LVMPD uses em here in Vegas

[@MontDawg]

I was told once the black was to hide in the dark since no one sees the side of them unless you are up along side of them, and the white was to stand out in dark if they were parked in a middle of a roadway

[@YES-wl4lr]

"but there's one thing that make a car chase a success, communication" My city: *immediately pit manouver*

[@1MinuteHISTORY913]

Who else is a true fan of Bright side 👇

[@mister1680]

😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑

[@nimblehealer199]

How about..... NO!

[@mister1680]

@@JewishLiveMusic He edited his comment 😂😂😂 No "gifting" for you 😢😂

[@gabrieltankersley8598]

Black painted on top, tan painted on the bottom, a stripe across the side that is yellow and black with the words Tennessee State Trooper (highway patrol)

[@YuriLifeLove]

I keep forgetting how the police car in my country looks like...

[@karycat9236]

Same bruh! XD

[@archierees6430]

What country do you live in

[@sitdowndogbreath]

@@archierees6430 don't listen to him he is related to Brad Pitt his first name is Stu

[@archierees6430]

@@sitdowndogbreath and plus I have absolutely have no clue what your talking about

[@sitdowndogbreath]

@@archierees6430 sound it out it's a play on words

[@duniahidalgo3343]

In miami dade they a green and yellow line over a white color and i think the green and yellow are fluorescent

[@markedmanmist]

This has turned from talking about it's paint job to the how the car is made

[@cheeseflesh6234]

That's actually what i thought 🤣

[@thijsbalvers362]

The is one problem, in the Netherlands emergency vehicals don't have Battenburg markings. The vehicals have red and blue striping, the stripes are retro reflective. So not only the easy europans have stipes on ther vehicals. Greetings from the Netherlands.

[@umeshp1504]

2:49 Melbourne? I live in Melbourne! Ive seen that type of Australian Police car before!

[@stevenbrown3783]

I remember back in the 80s cop cars in Edmonton where yellow lol

[@Ninja1live]

In Ontariostan MOST police cars are just regular cars. So NOT to be visible. And The ones that are marked are White with subtle markings. And some so subtle the almost blend in to the white paint. To make it easier to rip you off!

[@rarinth]

Lambo police cars: *exists* Me in a modified supra: you have no power here

[@sebby324]

I’m English and just want to say that when you used a British ambulance with red and blue lights that’s wrong they flash just blue same with the other emergency vehicles here. Also 6:24 is BS motors not bright side bulls*it motors

[@motoe948]

It depends

[@TheReezwan]

Wow

[@jamieward6998]

Hello Tay💞 this is Jackson speaking can you talk about the Queen Elizabeth

[@starrboii7523]

Lve your vid

[@jasminejohnston6393]

RCMP police cars in Canada are mostly blue and white, with red and blue stripes along the side

[@sevencube3]

I remember it as, "so long as it's black".

[@umarq131]

Nice

[@cliveforonda5072]

I live from the Philippines but I’m from Dubai for my vacation and I stay there for 3 years because I don’t have enough money for the airport.

[@Surv1ve_Thrive]

Good luck Clive.

[@gdviicecold9008]

The police cars in Namibia where I live are separated as white for most them with red and blue lines, we even have unmarked police cars and black cars with the same performance and all of these are clearly faster. South Africa is almost the same as the UK Police cars.

[@SolSueno]

Yes

[@vinnyd1888]

3:11 my country has that

[@MrSwede_Unboxing]

why did u not do it with sweden??

[@PakNadraService]

good

[@topboss9558]

Nice👉👍👍👍👍

[@brennonmilner285]

Okay just putting this out there. The color schemes you talked about you might be right but you missed ALOT when it comes to the equipment and how they are different. Yes the chassys and suspension are modified for better performance and to help with added weight but you didnt mention that the floor boards are reinforced theyre equipment today is ran through a electric console in the back where everything is linked and ran and alot of the new ones run off the stock battery and stock engine because vehicle performance has gotten better in the automotive industry and L.E.D conversions allow for more equipment usage without having an added electrical supply and they only use half the power consumption . They also have bigger radiators and cooling systems so that when at high speeds the car doesn't overheat plus all the idling hours.

[@yoinkman2876]

Does the bright side back the blue ?

[@enjoythesiren911]

Police cars in New York City are white with 2 blue stripes and NYPD written in between the strips. Same with the police buses to

[@lmlawson518]

1:35 hold up..THATS BEAMNG DRIVES POLICE DEPARTMENT!!!

[@yeoldeseawitch]

its actually washington DC's paintjob, BEAMNG just stole it for their belasco city police cars

[@mr.formal6723]

In Miami, its colored green and white And in NY, its colored blue and white

[@FFICommand]

The car from Australia you showed was a fire department car

[@matthewcottam221]

My one is like the highlight yellow blue and white

[@NarkoHamponTV]

Flat Surface KEY WORD

[@Christopher_Widjaja]

Usually police cars are painted grey in Indonesia, but there are some painted in white, blue and red

[@aaditya9525]

Yep

[@hammerandpickle7390]

The Melbourne police car, isn't a police car, its SES, basically like a rescue service, police cars are usally the same but blue and some other changes.

[@oceanstrong2671]

I’ve been in a situation

[@ohen299]

Btw Czech state police has sliver cars with green and blue markings. This was a city police

[@johnny.jmps1]

In NYC the cars are all white with blue letters and for troopers it’s all dark blue with yellow