POLICE TRAFFIC RESPONSIBILITIES

• NCJ Number: 48170
• Author(s): R D SMITH; B KEENAN; R SHAMBERHER; J KARMASEK
• Date Published: 1976
• Length: 267 pages
• Contract Number(s): FH 11-6934
• Sponsoring Agency: US Dept of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Admin
• Corporate Author: International Assoc of Chiefs of Police
• Sale Source: International Assoc of Chiefs of Police
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: HIGHWAY SAFETY PROGRAM MANAGEMENT SERIES, V 2

Annotation

A DETAILED ANALYSIS OF POLICE TRAFFIC SYSTEMS DATA IS PROVIDED. THE DATA ARE ALSO SYNTHESIZED INTO SPECIFIC MANPOWER ALLOCATION MODELS.

Abstract

THE DATA FOR THE STUDY WERE COLLECTED FROM NINE POLITICAL JURISDICTIONS KNOWN TO HAVE OUTSTANDING TRAFFIC SERVICES. THE DATA WERE ANALYZED, SUPPLEMENTED, VERIFIED, AND THEN STRUCTURED INTO A TAXONOMY OF FUNCTION, SUBFUNCTION TASK, AND MANPOWER DATA THAT SERVE AS A QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE PERSONNEL REQUIREMENTS INVENTORY FOR EACH SITE. IN ADDITION, A CHART WAS DEVELOPED TO DSCRIBE THE PROPERTIES AND THE VARIABLES WHICH COULD AFFECT THE POLICE TRAFFIC SYSTEMS OF EACH SITE. THE ANALYSIS OF FUNCTIONS AND INTERRELATIONSHIPS WAS THEN SUBSTRUCTURED INTO A NUMBER OF MANPOWER ALLOCATION MODELS OF VARIOUS LEVELS OF ABSTRACTION AND WAS VERIFIED FOR INTERNAL CONSISTENCY. THE MOST SPECIFIC MODELS ARE COMPLETE STUDIES OF THE DEPARTMENTS IN QUESTION AND ARE MOST APPLICABLE WHEN DEALING WITH COMPARABLE SITES. THE INTERMEDIATE MODELS DESCRIBE THE SERVICES AND ALLOCATIONS CHARACTERISTIC OF THE TRAFFIC DEPARTMENTS OF THE STATE POLICE, STATE HIGHWAY PATROL, COUNTY POLICE, AND CITY POLICE. THE GENERAL MODEL PROVIDES A GRAPHIC AND MATHEMATICAL FORMULATION FOR ALLOCATING MANPOWER FOR ALL SYSTEMS IRRESPECTIVE OF THE INDIVIDUAL SITE PROPERTIES AND POLITICAL JURISDICTIONS. THE ACCURACY OF THE JURISDICTIONAL MANPOWER MODELS PREDICTIONS IS THOUGHT TO BE ABOUT 84 PERCENT, WHILE THE GENERAL MODEL PREDICTIONS MAY BE MORE ACCURATE. TRAFFIC SERVICES, TRAFFIC VOLUME, AND TRAFFIC CONGESTION ARE APPARENTLY THE MOST CRITICAL FACTORS FOR PREDICTING MANPOWER NEEDS, AND THE LATTER TWO VARIABLES SHOULD RECEIVE MORE WEIGHTING THAN THE FORMER. FROM ONE-HALF TO TWO-THIRDS OF ALL UNIFORMED PERSONNEL MANPOWER WILL VERY LIKELY BE SPENT PERFORMING THE FOLLOWING TRAFFIC FUNCTIONS: TRAFFIC DIRECTION AND CONTROL, ACCIDENT MANAGEMENT, LAW ENFORCEMENT, ANCILLARY SERVICES, SUPPORT, JUSTICE SYSTEMS INTERACTIONS, AND REGULATORY ACTIVITIES. ABOUT 75 TO 85 PERCENT OF ALL MANPOWER IS NEEDED TO FILL THE LAW ENFORCEMENT AND SUPPORT FUNCTION REQUIREMENTS. GENERAL PUBLIC TRAFFIC RESPONSIBILITIES ARE IDENTIFIED AND DISCUSSED. POLICE TRAFFIC FUNCTIONS, AND MANPOWER ALLOCATION AND DISTRIBUTION ARE DETAILED. SUPPORTING TABULAR DATA ARE PROVIDED. CASE STUDIES OF SELECTED SITES ARE APPENDED. A BIBLIOGRAPHY IS INCLUDED. (AUTHOR'S ABSTRACT MODIFIED--RCB)