Philadelphia police resume I-95 patrols

Just as the Philadelphia Police Department is pledging to put more feet on the streets to combat crime, it has reversed a decision to remove highway patrols from I- 95.

In August, Pennsylvania state troopers took over patrolling I-95 and the Schuylkill Expressway. Yesterday, a Philadelphia police spokeswoman confirmed that police squads would resume patrols of I-95.

"We're patrolling I-95," she said, offering no further details.

A spokesman for the Fraternal Order of Police, John McGrody, said three patrol squads would resume round-the-clock coverage, eventually returning to four squad cars per shift.

McGrody said that at first, about 25 officers would be reassigned to I-95 patrols.

The move came as news to Capt. David F. Young, commander of Troop K, the state police unit that covers Philadelphia and Delaware and Montgomery Counties.

He said the agreement to turn over I-95 and Schuylkill patrols to state police, which Gov. Rendell's office helped craft, "has not changed at all."

Young said state police would still be "handling primary jurisdiction" for highways, including responding to 911 calls, disabled vehicles and accidents.

"We're not changing at all what we do on a day-to-day basis," Young said.

When the city turned over the patrols, the Police Department said it would redeploy 63 officers to other areas.

The FOP sued to block the action. Reinstating the I-95 patrols to avert a lawsuit is "a waste," City Councilman Frank Rizzo Jr. said.

Now both Philadelphia police and state troopers will be guarding the same stretch of highway, he said.

"It's redundant and silly," Rizzo said. "This is the kind of decision that I think makes people wonder about their government."

The city originally asked the state last year to reimburse the Police Department for the cost of patrolling state highways, Rizzo said. Instead, Rendell offered to have troopers take over the job. The Police Department agreed, saying it would reassign officers to fight street crime and patrol Roosevelt Boulevard.

The FOP's McGrody said he expected all four squads to be put back into service eventually.

"It's a good thing because Philadelphia police are back on the highways," he said. "We feel we're the best people to do the job."