EVOC Courses in New York

Designed to test New York Police Basic School students' visual acuity, glare recovery and reaction time the Emergency Vehicle Operator Course is a 100-hour program that is divided into two phases: Phase one takes place in a controlled driving range, Phase two takes place on public highways. The overall purpose of the program is to train New York State Police (NYSP) to be able to drive under the often stressful and demanding conditions associated with patrolling in New York. Here is a breakdown of what you can expect from the course:

Phase One

In this phase drivers are taught the basic skills needed to operate and drive their Emergency Vehicle. Such training covers topics such as controlled braking, skid pan, police turns, serpentine, curved and straight backing up, parallel parking, precision driving and crash avoidance techniques. Students are required to demonstrate their mastery of these skills in two ways: First by driving a specifically arraigned course and second by participating in the "pursuit driving scenario." The pursuit driving scenario creates a scenario in which the student must pursue an instructor in a controlled environment. During the pursuit students must perform multiple tasks and ultimately decided if they should continue pursuit or not based on the conditions presented. If a student decides to continue the pursuit they must complete the course without hitting any of the obstacles on the driving course.

Phase Two

Phase two takes place on the public roadways. In this phase students are taught the correct techniques for stopping and approaching violators. The student is presented with various situations that NYSP officers routinely have to deal with while on patrol. The violator is almost always played by an instructor so the scenarios presented can be varied and controlled at the same time. Some scenarios include the violator driving away, having a weapon, not compiling with instructions, refusing to exit the vehicle, engaging in evasive driving and more.

To find out more about the NYSP EVOC contact the New York State Police directly by visiting their website at www.troopers.state.ny.us/contact_us/.