Amended Traffic Regulations for U.S. Capitol Grounds

The Capitol Police Board has amended the Traffic Regulations for the United States Capitol Grounds, now referred to as the Capitol Traffic Regulations (CTR). The CTR, as amended, will be published and publicly available on the U.S. Capitol Police website. The CTR will be effective and enforceable by June 1, 2014.

This is the first major amendment to the CTR in over 30 years, and there are numerous changes.

The CTR was amended following the exhaustive work of a task force comprised of personnel from the USCP, Architect of the Capitol and House and Senate Sergeants at Arms. The efforts of the task force involved a review of the former CTR and current District of Columbia statutes and municipal regulations. The goal of the task force was to propose to the Capitol Police Board amendments to the CTR intended to make the regulations more comprehensive and specifically aligned with current traffic regulation and enforcement on Capitol Grounds.

The CTR is divided into three articles. Article I sets forth the overall framework of the CTR. Article II covers motor vehicle violations and Article III contains non-motor vehicle CTR provisions from pedestrian activities to pedicabs. The Table of Contents outlines the chapters within each article. The numbering system is designed to make it easier to update the CTR and group similar violations together. For example, every section in Chapter 5 covers tag violations and there are no tag violations in any other section. Any new regulation related to tag violations promulgated by the District of Columbia or the Capitol Police Board will be included in this section, as appropriate.

Summary of Significant Amendments

• One of the major differences between the amended CTR and the former CTR is that the language in the amended CTR has been redrafted to be straightforward and easier to understand. Any regulation with overly technical language (e.g., brake force deceleration per second) has been redrafted to ensure greater clarity (e.g., "All brakes shall be maintained in good working order.")


• There is an entirely new chapter, Chapter 9, dealing with taxicabs that corresponds with current District of Columbia regulations.


• Bicycles, Segways, and pedicabs are covered separately from motor vehicles in Article III. Article III covers all foot and recreational traffic on the Capitol Grounds and is updated to include all new architectural features on the Capitol Grounds including the East Front and Capitol Visitors' Center.


• There is a substantially revised section on demonstrations and other miscellaneous activities on the Capitol Grounds. One of the changes to this section is the requirement that road races will only be permitted through the Capitol Grounds on Sundays and that the demonstration rules apply to groups of 20 or under as well as to groups of over 20.

If there are any questions about these events or our security procedures, you may contact the United States Capitol Police Public Information Office at 202-224-1677.

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About the U.S. Capitol Police:

The U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) is comprised of over 2,000 sworn and civilian employees. The USCP is the sole federal law enforcement agency in the Legislative branch of government whose mission it is to protect the Congress, its legislative processes, Members, employees, visitors, and facilities from crime, disruption, or terrorism. We protect and secure Congress so it can fulfill its constitutional responsibilities in a safe and open environment.