The New York City Police Department graduated 129 Traffic Enforcement Agents Feb. 26. The new graduates join a force of 2,780 agents and supervisors who manage traffic throughout the five boroughs.

     Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly spoke at the graduation ceremony inside Police Headquarters. He said:        

     “The NYPD Traffic Control Division plays a crucial role in our overall mission of keeping New York safe. Its agents protect both motorist and pedestrian, while putting their own lives on the double-yellow line – they prevent accidents by controlling busy intersections, clearing hazardous conditions from roadways, and providing for the free and orderly flow of traffic for more than 8 million residents and visitors. Without their presence, the city would be at a literal stand-still.”

     Traffic Enforcement Agents are civilian members of the Department. They must pass 12 weeks of training in parking and traffic rules and regulations, intersection control and ticketing before being assigned to posts throughout New York City.           

     Traffic-related fatalities in New York City fell 15% in 2007 from the year before, registering the fewest number of vehicular deaths since records were first kept in 1910.

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Photo: New Traffic Enforcement Agents stand at attention at a graduation ceremony inside One Police Plaza. NYPD Photo Unit