Florida Highway Patrol Now Uses Semi-Trucks for Traffic Stops

Law enforcement departments across the country have been stepping up their games with vehicles used for traffic stops. Several have graduated from the iconic Crown Vics and now use Dodge Chargers, F-150s, or other “regular” vehicles.

The Florida Highway Patrol now uses a fleet of semi-trucks to either call out bad drivers to fellow officers in patrol cars or even pull them over themselves.

The first truck was wrapped back in 2014, when a Florida Department of Transportation truck was repurposed as a sort of traffic overwatch vehicle. The truck started out calling in driving violations, think texting, open containers, aggressive driving, and then radio-ing officers down the road to conduct a traffic stop.

Some may say “But wouldn’t a semi stand out and blow their cover”? And while that makes sense, the Troopers say it’s actually just the opposite.

“Believe it or not, people will pass this truck, although it is marked as one of our units,” said Sergeant Christopher Galante to the Sun-Sentinel. “It is amazing what people do around tractor-trailers.”

It turns out people aren’t used to the traffic stop semis and cruise right on by them. It’s proven to be effective however, FHP Lieutenant Derrick Rahming Sr. says it’s something they rarely do. Instead, the trucks are more often used for spotting and calling in offending drivers.

Lieutenant Rahming told CDL Life, “FHP’s Office of Commercial Vehicle Enforcement has three marked semi-trucks. The semi-trucks are used in various capacities, including traffic enforcement details. These semi-trucks are properly equipped to initiate a traffic stop; however, they are used primarily for spotting.”

In addition, the trucks address another rising issue. The trucks sometimes pull “No-Zone” trailers that educate drivers on the dangers of inattentive driving around semis.