Specialization of Traffic Law Enforcement Divisions

Introduction Total traffic fatalities in the District have declined significantly (by about 51%) in the last 15 years. Despite the improvement in the overall fatality rate, the decline was not seen across all modalities. Bicyclist and pedestrian fatalities together continue to account for about 43% of total traffic fatalities, although walking and bicycling comprise only 12.8% of all commutes to work in the city.1 The disproportionate number of bicyclist and pedestrian fatalities presents a challenge as the city increasingly turns to multi-modal transportation to keep pace with the Districts growing urban density and to meet the citys goals for a sustainable future. In 2010, the city launched the now iconic Capital Bikeshare system in anticipation of increased congestion from an additional 1.2 million new regional residents in the next 20 years.2 In 2011, Mayor Vincent Gray set forth a Sustainability Plan for the city in which he established a target of increasing bicycling and walking rates to 25% of all commutes within 20 years.3 Clearly, the city considers biking and walking to be integral to its long-term success, but given that safety concerns are a barrier to increasing bicycle ridership4, achieving this goal will require addressing existing bicycling safety issues in Washington, DC. The following research paper focuses on the role of traffic law enforcement in ensuring bicycling safety. In particular, the paper examines the prevalence, benefits, and drawbacks of specialized traffic law enforcement, particularly as implemented in bike-friendly cities. Through this research, the analysis seeks to determine whether a specialized traffic law enforcement unit should be implemented by the DC Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) to increase bicycling safety in the District of Columbia community.

1 2

Calculations based on figures provided in: Alliance for Biking and Walking. (2010). 2010 Benchmarking Report. Metropolitan Council of Governments. (2010), A Regional Bike-sharing System for the National Capital Region. 3 District Department of the Environment and District of Columbia Office of Planning. (2011). Sustainability DC. 4 Furth, Peter. Bicycling Infrastructure for Mass Cycling. City Cycling.

Background There exists some research regarding the organization of traffic enforcement operations in US police departments. Historically, municipal police departments did not recognize traffic law enforcement as a unique type of enforcement; it was regarded as part of general law enforcement and performed by patrol officers as part of their routine assignments. However, as the popularity of the automobile expanded in America, traffic accidents and congestion became regular phenomenon, particularly after World War I, igniting public demands for improved policing. Metropolitan police departments across the country responded by developing specialized police traffic divisions in the 1930s-1950s with standardized practices and procedures. Under these specialized units, local traffic laws were enforced by specially trained officers whose primary responsibility was to pursue enforcement actions against violators and investigate accidents. These officers also recorded reliable information regarding accidents that was later analyzed to determine effective traffic management strategies.5 Traffic fatality statistics collected from US cities that transitioned to a specialized traffic enforcement model in the late 1930s and 1940s [Los Angeles, Detroit, Atlanta, Chattanooga, Chicago, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Oakland, and Portland (OR)] suggest that specialization of traffic enforcement operations improved traffic safety for those locations. These cities saw on average a 56% reduction in their traffic fatality rate by 1952. 6 The specialized traffic enforcement structure was adopted by many police departments, but it was not seen as an optimal structure by all law enforcement leaders. Some critics of specialization argued that the configuration was too expensive, requiring an increased labor force and additional equipment (like patrol vehicles). Other critics complained about the duplicative efforts and inefficiencies that can result from a structure that was too compartmentalized. Still others argued that the random nature of traffic

Kreml, Franklin M. (1954). The Specialized Traffic Division. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 291, 63-72. 6 Calculation based on figures provided in: Kreml, Franklin M. (1954). The Specialized Traffic Division. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 291, 63-72.

accidents meant that traffic specialists were idling for much of the time. These critics posited that given proper training, patrol officers would be able to handle cross duties including traffic law enforcement.7 Today, municipalities still debate traffic law enforcement specialization, though these debates are driven largely by the financial requirements of a specialized unit and not necessarily the merits of the specialization approach. Law enforcement planning guides and manuals recommend that police departments establish specialized traffic units whenever possible to ensure that traffic enforcement responsibilities are not neglected.8 According to the International Association of Chiefs of Police Highway Safety Committee, organizational commitment to traffic safety helps to advance traffic safety as a priority in the agency, improves officer knowledge and motivation to enforce traffic laws, reduces traffic accidents and associated injuries and fatalities, and reduces crime involving traffic.9 Nonetheless, specialization requires supplemental equipment, training, and staff, which can be costly.10 In fact, in recent years, several municipalities with specialized traffic law enforcement divisions have decentralized or are considering it as a means to save money.11

Traffic Law Enforcement Structure in Washington, DC In Washington, D.C., the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD)s traffic law enforcement operations follow a decentralized organization structure. Rather than have dedicated resources perform traffic law enforcement, all MPD patrol officers are trained and expected to enforce traffic laws as part of their routine assignment. District Commanders assigned to each of the citys seven police districts coordinate and oversee traffic law enforcement within each police district. The intent of this structure is

Stinson, Palmer. (1961). A Case for De-Specialization of Traffic Operations. The Journal of Criminal Law, Criminology, and Police Science, 51, 5, 561-566. 8 International Association of Chiefs of Police Highway Safety Committee. (2003). Traffic Safety Strategies for Law Enforcement. 9 Id. 10 Id. 11 Lieutenant Chris Davis, Portland Police Bureau, Interview, August 7 2013 and September 26 2013.

to afford the MPD greater flexibility, since all officers are trained in traffic enforcement and any officer can respond to a traffic need.12 This decentralized organization model originated in 1998 when then Police Chief Charles H. Ramsey implemented a new policing approach which emphasized community policing.13 The new approach involved a top-to-bottom restructuring of the police force and specialized units like traffic enforcement were disbanded and its officers were dispersed among the seven police districts.14 The Police Chief also introduced automated traffic enforcement (such as red-light and speeding cameras) to the city to curb aggressive driving, which was seen as a prominent traffic safety issue at the time.1516

Traffic Law Enforcement Structure in Peer Communities The prevalence of specialized traffic law enforcement divisions, especially among bike-friendly cities, is not known. To gain a sense of how other bike-friendly cities structure their traffic law enforcement operations, this research paper explores the traffic law enforcement structures in two major cities that are similar to Washington, DC in terms of maturity of bicycling programs (as measured by bike friendliness designation by the League of American Bicyclists) and law enforcement demand (as measured by property and violent crime rate). The two cities Portland (OR) and Boston both have specialized traffic divisions. In Portland, the Portland Police Bureaus (PPB) Traffic Division employs 43 full-time enforcement officers to provide traffic enforcement throughout the city.17 In Boston, the Boston Police Departments (BPD) Special

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MPD, Interview, September 20 2013. Metropolitan Police Department, Biography of Charles H. Ramsey. Accessed via: http://mpdc.dc.gov/biography/charles-h-ramsey . 14 Wilber, Del Quentin. (2005, February 24). More Cameras for D.C. Traffic. The Washington Post. Accessed via: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/03/23/AR2005032300477.html . 15 Klein, Allison and Nakamura, David. (2006, November 18). Chief Ramsey to Step Down, Sources Say. The Washington Post. Accessed via: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2006/11/17/AR2006111701517_2.html .
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Lieutenant Chris Davis, Portland Police Bureau, Interview, August 7 2013 and September 26 2013.

Operations employs approximately 50 full-time officers.18 This suggests that implementing a specialized traffic law enforcement division is preferred and feasible in bike-friendly cities like Washington, DC that also have similar law enforcement demands. While both cities enforce traffic law using specialized units, the degree of specialization varies between them. For instance, the PPBs Traffic Division is relatively specialized. While its enforcement officers may be dispatched to assist with other calls, their primary focus is traffic law enforcement.19 In comparison, the BPDs Special Operations Unit is much less specialized. Each of the officers in the unit serve cross duties in traffic enforcement, special event escort, and special weapons and tactics, but their primary responsibility is traffic control. This variance suggests a spectrum of traffic division specialization among police departments that implement the strategy, likely allowing cities to tailor their enforcement unit to their needs. The bicycle safety record of both cities is comparable to that of Washington, DC. The bicyclist fatality rate in Portland is 1.2 fatalities for every 10,000 bicyclists, and the bicyclist fatality rate in Boston is 1.7 fatalities for every 10,000 riders in Boston. By comparison, Washington, DC has 1.3 fatalities for every 10,000 bicyclists.20 However, there does appear to be a pattern when one considers bicyclist and pedestrian fatalities as a proportion of total traffic fatalities. Bicyclist and pedestrian fatalities together comprise a smaller percentage of total traffic fatalities in Portland and Boston than in D.C. (See, Figure 1). This finding suggests that while a specialized enforcement unit may benefit pedestrian safety, it is unclear how such specialization may affect bicyclist fatality rates.

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BPD, Interview, August 16 2013. Lieutenant Chris Davis, Portland Police Bureau, Interview, August 7 2013 and September 26 2013. 20 Alliance for Biking and Walking. (2010). 2010 Benchmarking Report.

DC Portland Boston

Bike Fatalities per 10K bicyclists 1.3 1.2 1.7

% of all traffic fatalities that are bicyclist and pedestrian 43.40% 35.00% 35.20%

Figure 1 Comparison of Bicycling and Pedestrian Fatality Rates Source: Alliance for Biking and Walking. (2010). 2010 Benchmarking Report.

Portlands experience with its Traffic Division suggests that a dedicated traffic unit ensures a consistent level of traffic enforcement. The PPB Traffic Divisions 43 full-time traffic enforcement specialists provide traffic law enforcement in Portland from 7A.M. to 3 A.M. each weekday and from 5 P.M to 3 A.M. on Saturdays and on Sundays.21 It is not clear how this level of coverage compares to the coverage provided under the MPDs decentralized system, since the MPD does not currently track how many hours of coverage are provided on a regular basis. The MPD also does not have a minimum requirement for traffic law enforcement by patrol officers.22 Portlands dedicated resources also enable the PPB to provide proactive traffic law enforcement (surveillance and education) instead of simply responding to traffic calls. In Portland, it is estimated that traffic enforcement specialists spend 75% of their time providing proactive enforcement.23

Recommendation The experiences of Portland and Boston suggest that possessing a specialized traffic division is favored and feasible in a city with law enforcement demands similar to those of Washington DC. Their experiences also reveal that a specialized traffic division would benefit the Districts community by likely reducing pedestrian traffic fatalities, while providing consistent enforcement, and generating greater opportunities for proactive enforcement and public education about traffic safety. An exhaustive

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Lieutenant Chris Davis, Portland Police Bureau, Interview, August 7 2013 and September 26 2013. MPD, Interview, September 20 2013. 23 Lieutenant Chris Davis, Portland Police Bureau, Interview, August 7 2013 and September 26 2013.

literature review also reveals that a specialized traffic division can help foster officer motivation and focus on traffic issues, as well as improve officer training on traffic law. Without discounting the findings of this paper, but in consideration of the limited nature of this analysis, its recommended that the MPD conduct a cost-benefit analysis to determine the feasibility of implementing a specialized traffic law enforcement unit in the MPD.

Acknowledgements The author would like to thank the following individuals, as well as countless others who remain anonymous, for their assistance in providing information and identifying data sources: (in alphabetical order) Jameel Alsalam of the DC Bicycle Advisory Council, Boston Police Department, Lieutenant Chris Davis of the Portland Police Bureau, , Ellen Jones of the DC Bicycle Advisory Council, the Metropolitan Police Department.