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(NewsDakota.com) – Jamestown Police cars should be getting an upgrade in technology in the near future.

Police chief Scott Edinger informed the City Police Committee on Wednesday that the department plans to use grant money to activate more capabilities for the Mobile Data Terminals already installed in police cars.

Edinger says they also need to purchase air cards for each computer through Verizon.

The upgrade will enable more capabilities and increase efficiency for the police department, allowing for more work to be done in the car. It will also allow for text messaging from dispatchers when dealing with information that cannot go out over the radios. Currently, some officers have to use their personal cell phones when dealing with sensitive information.

Councilman Ramone Gumke, who is a Stutsman County sheriff’s deputy, says the Sheriff’s Department has the same system and the biggest benefit is the efficiency and time-savings.

Edinger estimated start-up costs at about $15,000, which grant money will cover for the rest of this fiscal year. He says there would then be an annual cost of about $5,700 to continue the technology. Edinger would have to come to the council at budget time to secure the annual operation costs.