The police cruiser’s high-performance engine roared down the open runway as it strained to hit 50 mph within a few seconds — replicating the high-stakes urgency that's vital in response to an emergency call.⁠ The tires squealed, suddenly gripping asphalt as a police cadet hit the brakes and yanked the steering wheel for a 90-degree right turn.⁠ This was the scene on a Southern Tier police academy’s driving course, where cadets had two minutes and 20 seconds to maneuver a police cruiser through a course studded with orange cones, both forward and in reverse.⁠ The training is supposed to prepare future officers for real-world police driving, when civilian lives are at stake on the road. An investigation from the USA TODAY Network-New York, the Newhouse School (newhousesu) and the Central Current found that hundreds of police vehicle crashes took place in one city alone (Syracuse) between 2013 and 2022. The project team has partial data on police crashes in Rochester and Westchester Count...