subject: A Look At Driving A Police Car [print this page] There is more to being a police officer than parking in the shade and waiting for speeding cars to go after. They often have to transport criminals to jail and to court. Some criminals may not be too cooperative, so cops do have to chase them if necessary, especially if they start their car up again and take them on a chase. Police academy classes include driving lessons that keep our cops specially trained for all these high speed chases and emergencies.
You will find many police cars are nice models that are known for their safety ratings. Some police departments specifically go with fast cars to deal with high-speed chases on the highway. Modern-day muscle cars such as the Chevrolet Camaro and Dodge Charger are perfect for these fast-paced car or bike chases on any American road.
Driving training at police academy would differ from state to state. The standard curriculum would include at least 40 hours of driving training, but it's common for these courses to last a lot longer. There are different teaching styles used in these courses. After watching videos and taking down notes in class, rookie cops would then be asked to apply what they have learned by driving an actual police car.
Even police officers whose job requires them to drive criminals on long trips require special training that is usually more intensive than usual. This is to ensure they are able to perform all of the duties of their job responsibly even when they have to be watching out for their own safety. Intensive training is also required anytime a policeman's duties include going on high speed highway chases.
As any good police officer can attest to, there is really no way to predict what will take place on a given day. A cop's duty is to serve and protect, and this can include just about any function there is in the book. Driving skills are essential to a policeman's success, and are a very important part of their training. And to make sure policemen are still following best practices, they sometimes need to go through refresher courses. Also, procedures and policies may change dynamically, so these courses keep them updated on the changes.
