Do everyday proactive policing activities reduce vehicle crashes? Examining a commonly held law enforcement belief using a novel method

Abstract

Traffic accidents present a significant challenge to public safety and are a top priority for many law enforcement agencies in the United States. Empirical studies suggest that police agencies commonly engage in traffic enforcement activities to be proactive, spending much of their downtime patrolling areas with heightened risks for vehicle crashes. Despite the ongoing focus on traffic enforcement in daily police work, the impact of these efforts on traffic accidents remains unclear. The current study uses a Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) framework to examine everyday police proactive work and its impact on vehicle crashes at “hot spots” of collisions in a large suburban jurisdiction. Findings indicate that routine patrol levels and activities produce short-term reductions in crashes at the most serious crash hot spots but have less impact elsewhere. To generate a more sustained and optimal effect on traffic safety, everyday police proactivity needs to be more carefully calibrated in terms of its targeting, dosage, and types of activities.