Traffic agent vs public safety officer

The differences between traffic agents and public safety officers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a public safety officer has an average salary of $36,596, which is higher than the $34,741 average annual salary of a traffic agent.

The top three skills for a traffic agent include patrol, motor vehicle and summonses. The most important skills for a public safety officer are patrol, patients, and public safety.

Traffic agent vs public safety officer overview

	Traffic Agent	Public Safety Officer
Yearly salary	$34,741	$36,596
Hourly rate	$16.70	$17.59
Growth rate	3%	3%
Number of jobs	27,806	122,048
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 32%	Bachelor's Degree, 38%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	-	-

Traffic agent vs public safety officer salary

Traffic agents and public safety officers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Traffic Agent	Public Safety Officer
Average salary	$34,741	$36,596
Salary range	Between $21,000 And $55,000	Between $29,000 And $46,000
Highest paying City	-	New Britain, CT
Highest paying state	-	North Dakota
Best paying company	-	University of California, Berkeley
Best paying industry	-	Health Care

Differences between traffic agent and public safety officer education

There are a few differences between a traffic agent and a public safety officer in terms of educational background:

	Traffic Agent	Public Safety Officer
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 32%	Bachelor's Degree, 38%
Most common major	Business	Criminal Justice
Most common college	California State University - Bakersfield	California State University - Bakersfield

Traffic agent vs public safety officer demographics

Here are the differences between traffic agents' and public safety officers' demographics:

	Traffic Agent	Public Safety Officer
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 52.4% Female, 47.6%	Male, 76.7% Female, 23.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.0% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 20.8% Asian, 2.9% White, 58.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%	Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 19.5% Asian, 3.4% White, 59.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between traffic agent and public safety officer duties and responsibilities

Traffic agent example responsibilities.

Lead team providing cargo, personal property and passenger movements for DoD personnel.
Attend special ceremonies for NYPD personal.
Represent the NYPD traffic division on a daily basis.
Create airway bills for walk-in, and process receivable payments.
Interact with pedestrians on a daily basis always using CPR.
Coordinate between mills and forwarders to endure delivery of orders worldwide.

Public safety officer example responsibilities.

Manage litigation and bankruptcy matters.
Apply hand cuffs, restraints and calm combative irate people, handling emergency situations, report writing, CPR, a.
Patrol campus, answer calls: fire, police, ems.
Engage in assistance for medical staff in dangerous situations, patient restraints, heavy lifting, and area access.
Monitor campus radio and cameras, dispatch emergency calls, issue summonses and utilize the NYSPIN computer communication network.
Involve in patient restraints and aggressive patient/visitor confrontations.

Traffic agent vs public safety officer skills

Common traffic agent skills

Patrol, 17%
Motor Vehicle, 15%
Summonses, 14%
Customer Service, 13%
Direct Traffic, 6%
Traffic Control, 4%

Common public safety officer skills

Patrol, 18%
Patients, 17%
Public Safety, 12%
Customer Service, 7%
CPR, 5%
Emergency Situations, 5%

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Traffic Agent
Traffic Agent vs Public Safety Officer

Updated January 8, 2025

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