This article overviews the current state of alternative traffic enforcement practice and lays out some opportunities for future research; it is organized into sections that describe the current state of alternative traffic enforcement, challenges and methodological shortcomings in measuring racial disparities, traffic enforcement reform efforts and initiatives, and formal evaluations of alternative traffic enforcement strategies.
Alternative traffic enforcement is an emerging crime and justice issue prompted by efforts of dozens of jurisdictions throughout the United States. In response to documented dangers and disparities, they seek to change how some traffic violations are handled. Specifically, these strategies try to increase public safety and reduce demands on officers by deprioritizing some traffic offenses and shifting enforcement responsibilities to alternative agencies or technologies. Most of these programs are in their infancy. Few have documented outcomes or formal evaluations to assess their effectiveness. As a result, there is a little information about the potential impact of recent initiatives on public and officer safety, disparities, and other important outcomes, which provides a fundamental research opportunity. The article first describes the issue and current state of U.S. alternative traffic enforcement strategies, highlighting challenges in measuring disparities. It then provides a summary of documented alternative traffic enforcement reforms, initiatives, and related research. The article closes with a description of future research opportunities.