Baltimore Police made 10K traffic stops since start of new enforcement plan

The Baltimore Police Department has made more than 10,000 traffic stops in about six weeks since the launch of a March traffic enforcement initiative.

The Baltimore Police Department has made more than 10,000 traffic stops in about six weeks since the launch of a new traffic enforcement initiative.

Starting March 29, the plan had police focus on two or three areas in each district that have the highest concentrations of accidents causing deaths and injuries over the past three years.

The department said at the time that the increased enforcement would include enhanced patrolling, more traffic stops specifically for traffic violations and sobriety checkpoints.

In a news release Thursday, the department reported that since the changes, the city has seen only one traffic-related fatality. Before March 29, there were 16 vehicle-related fatalities in Baltimore this year.

BPD issued 206 citations within the enforcement zones and made 60 arrests for traffic violations, 17 of which involved a handgun violation, the department said.

“Before the initiative, we were seeing way too many fatalities, serious accidents and road rage incidents,” Worley said in the release. “By working with the Mayor’s Office, our law enforcement partners, other city agencies and the community, we are showing that we are reducing traffic-related incidents by issuing citations to drivers who do not obey the rules of the road.”

Along with the traffic initiative, BPD has worked with the Department of Transportation to replace stop signs, add speed limit signage, review light timing, add pedestrian markings and traffic striping, and evaluate the possibility of speed cameras, according to the release.

A state dashboard that reports traffic stops, along with the race of the stopped individual, shows that Baltimore Police made 21,652 traffic stops in 2022. About 80% of the drivers were Black in a city with a population that is about 61% Black.