How much does it cost to transport a prisoner?

It varies, but the amount stated by the various organizations involved in prisoner transport is typically very inflated.

To figure costs consider:

• The number of prisoners being transported
• The number of supervising officers needed divided by the number of prisoners being transported.
• The cost of the vehicle(s) used divided by the years in use and the number of prisoners transported.
• Meals for prisoners and staff.
• Fuel, divided by the number of prisoners transported.
• Chains and custody devices, divided by the number of years in use and the number of prisoners transported.

To put this into perspective, try this:

Figure ten prisoners in a transport. That would mean two custody staff and a driver. The average pay for a corrections officer in a certain state is $19 per hour, times three that is $57, call it a five hour transport, so we have $285. divide this by the ten and you get $28.50.

Now, add into that the cost of the van with modifications made for inmate transport. Call it an even $100,000. Divide that by a reasonable five years of service, and you have $20,000 a year, or about $48 a day, divide that by ten and you have $4.80.

Combined with staff and you are at $33.30.

Meals, the cost to feed inmates in the state of Michigan is less that $5 a day, so we will take the high ground and round it to that $5. At five hours, call it two meals, we have $3.33.

Up to $36.63.

Fuel: At a national average of near $4 per gallon, we'll just call it that. Fuel economy for the various DOCs' favorite vans is the Chevy Express 1500; it's MPG rating is 14, at an average of 60 mph for 5 hours, you can travel 300 miles. That divided by mpg and you get 21 gallons and fractions. We'll round that up to 25 gallons for idling, etc. At $4 a gallon, you have $100.00. Divide that by the ten and you get $10 a head.

Add it to the total, and you are at $46.63.

Retention devices: The cost of a standard set of hinged cuffs is around $70. Chains could potentially bring that up to around $300. By ten, we're at $3,000; divide that by 10-20 years in service and you you're back down to $15 to $30. Go with the $30 and I won't even work out the per day expected cost.

We're at $76.63.

Now, it is common practice for prisoners of the MDOC to be moved back and forth "over the bridge." That means transport from prisons in the lower peninsula to those in the upper peninsula. The per inmate posted cost of these transports is $1700. These trips can take anywhere from 5 to 20 hours, and the "snowbird," the bus used to make the bridge runs holds at least 50 passengers. The fuel costs by comparison are about a wash, so no point considering that. Still, there is a lot of landscape between $76.63 and $1700.00.

Think about what the state does with the excess $1623.37. Now multiply that by 50, and consider this trip is made about 10 times a month. ($81,165.50 becomes $811,655.00 or $40,582,750.00 a year).

Things that make you go, "Hmm."