Every shift puts law enforcement officers on the road.

They patrol neighborhoods and highways, respond to calls, investigate crashes, conduct traffic stops, assist stranded motorists, and move from one assignment to the next. Much of that time is spent behind the wheel. At other moments, officers are standing only feet from moving traffic.

National Traffic Awareness Month in August provides an opportunity to focus on both sides of that risk: the decisions officers make behind the wheel and the decisions motorists make when approaching officers working along the roadway.

Both can determine whether someone gets home safely.

The Risks Behind the Wheel

Driving is so much a part of police work that it can become routine. The risks are anything but.

Between 2016 and 2025, 472 law enforcement officers nationwide died in roadway-related incidents, including 310 deaths from motor vehicle crashes and 162 from struck-by incidents.

Those numbers represent very different circumstances, but they share a common setting. The roadway remains a significant part of the working environment for law enforcement officers.

A patrol vehicle also presents demands that most motorists never encounter. Officers may be driving while monitoring radio traffic, watching surrounding vehicles, locating an address, responding to changing information, or heading toward an emergency. Night shifts, extended hours, overtime, and fatigue can add another layer of risk.

Fatigue is more than feeling tired. Research on law enforcement and shift work has shown that insufficient sleep can affect reaction time, attention, judgment, memory, and driving performance. Those effects can become more pronounced after consecutive night shifts or extended periods without adequate rest.

For officers, recognizing those risks is part of getting through the shift safely.

Seat belts matter. Speed matters. Road and weather conditions matter. Distractions inside the vehicle matter. So does recognizing when fatigue is beginning to affect attention and reaction time.

None of those considerations diminish the urgency of police work. They acknowledge a reality that officers understand well – reaching the call safely is part of responding to it.

When the Patrol Vehicle Stops

The danger changes when an officer pulls onto the shoulder and steps outside.

A traffic stop, crash investigation, disabled vehicle, roadway obstruction, or traffic-control assignment can place an officer within feet of vehicles traveling at highway speeds. Emergency lights may be flashing, and patrol vehicles may be clearly visible, but there is often little physical protection between an officer and passing traffic.

Officers can position vehicles and themselves with safety in mind, remain aware of approaching traffic, and use available protective equipment. They cannot control the decisions being made inside every approaching vehicle.

That responsibility lies with the motorists approaching them.

See the Lights, Create the Space

Emergency lights ahead should immediately prompt a motorist to change the way they drive.

Pay attention to what is happening ahead. Reduce speed. Give the roadside scene additional room. Move over when required and when it is safe to do so.

Those actions are simple, but they matter.

An officer standing beside a stopped vehicle does not have the same protection as someone inside a car. A driver who is distracted, traveling too fast for conditions, or passing too closely can turn a routine roadside encounter into a serious collision in seconds.

Moving over creates distance. Slowing down creates additional reaction time. Paying attention gives a driver the opportunity to recognize the danger before reaching it.

For the officer on the shoulder, that space can make all the difference.

One Road, Two Responsibilities

Traffic safety is sometimes discussed as though officers and motorists occupy separate worlds. On the roadway, they share the same environment.

Officers have a responsibility to respect the risks that come with every mile behind the wheel. That includes driving appropriately for the circumstances, using restraints, managing distractions, remaining aware of changing conditions, and recognizing the effects of fatigue on performance.

Motorists have a responsibility when they encounter officers and other emergency personnel working along the roadway. That means noticing emergency lights early, slowing down, moving over, and allowing enough room for people to work safely.

Neither responsibility requires a complicated solution. It requires attention and deliberate decisions.

Getting Home Safely

National Traffic Awareness Month draws additional attention to roadway safety in August, but the risks do not follow a calendar.

For an officer, the drive to a call, the traffic stop on a busy highway, and even the trip home after a long shift can carry risks that deserve attention.

For motorists, the patrol vehicle stopped ahead is more than flashing lights on the shoulder. There may be an officer, deputy, trooper, firefighter, paramedic, tow operator, or stranded driver just a few feet away.

Roadway safety depends on what people do in those moments.

For officers, that means respecting the risks of driving. For motorists, it means seeing the lights, slowing down, and creating space.

Every one of those decisions can help someone make it home safely.