Traffic Safety helps you understand how drivers, cyclists, and walkers share the road safely. You will learn about safe driving habits, check a vehicle, and help spread the word about road safety. It's great preparation for the day you start driving.
Why it's worth it
You use roads every day as a passenger, a walker, or on a bike, and in a few years you may be behind the wheel. Traffic Safety helps you understand why crashes happen and what really prevents them, from seat belts to road design to putting the phone away. You'll start your driving years with good habits already in place, and you can help keep friends and family safer right now by speaking up as a passenger.
Start this week
- On your next car ride, count how many different sign shapes and colors you see, and guess what each shape means.
- Ask your Scoutmaster for the name of a Traffic Safety counselor, and send them a short message with a parent copied to set up a first meeting.
- Ask a parent to show you the owner's manual for the family car, or a borrowed one, and find the safety features section.
- Pick which option you're leaning toward for requirement 7: an interview, a pledge, or a safety event.
Stay safe
- Do the vehicle checkup with an adult while the car is parked and turned off, and stay out of traffic when looking at lights or tires.
Requirements · 8
Every official requirement and part, numbered to match Scouting America, in plain language. Sign off against the official wording (opens in a new tab) (updated 2025).
- Requirement 1
Preventing impaired driving
Tips for this section: Talk with a parent about how phones, tiredness, and impairment make driving dangerous.
Example for this section: Explain how each one affects a driver: a phone pulls eyes and attention off the road, alcohol or drugs slow reactions and judgment, and fatigue can be like driving impaired. Share one thing a passenger can do, like offering to handle the navigation.
- Requirement 1a
Explain why distracted drivers must not drive. List five common distractions, explain how distractions lead to crashes, and tell how drivers can reduce them
- Requirement 1b
Explain why a driver under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or other substances must never drive, and how alcohol, cold medicine, and prescription and illegal drugs affect driving. Find your state's legal blood alcohol limit, its DWI/DUI penalties, and its open-container law
- Requirement 1c
Explain why tired drivers must not drive, and how drivers should plan to stay alert when carrying family, friends, Scouts, or themselves
- Requirement 1d
Describe common new-driver mistakes, how they raise crash risk, how drivers can lower that risk, and how driving behavior affects car insurance rates
- Requirement 2
Vehicle safety
Tips for this section: Practice buckling up correctly and look for safety features in your family's car.
- Requirement 2a
Show the correct way to wear a lap and shoulder belt. Explain why the driver and every passenger, including children in age-appropriate seats, should always buckle up
- Requirement 2b
List five vehicle safety features other than seat belts and restraints, and describe what each is, how it works, and how it improves safety
- Requirement 3
Vehicle checkup with adult supervision
Tips for this section: Do the safety checkup with a parent, looking at tires, lights, and other key parts.
Example for this section: With a parent, walk around the car and check tire pressure and tread, all lights and turn signals, wipers, mirrors, and the horn. Write down what you checked and anything that needs attention.
- Requirement 3a
Using a vehicle you have access to, show that all headlights and signal lights are clean and working and where their switches are. Explain how lights help drivers stay safe, be courteous, and communicate with other drivers
- Requirement 3b
Explain what can block a driver's view through the front, rear, and side windows. Do a smear-and-clear test to see whether the wipers clear the windshield or need replacing, and describe good- and bad-weather times wipers matter
- Requirement 3c
Show how to find the recommended tire pressure, check tire pressure, and check tread depth. Explain why pressure and tread matter for traction, stopping distance, tire wear, and fuel economy
- Requirement 3d
Check that the vehicle has the tools to change a flat or apply tire sealant. Demonstrate changing a flat tire and using tire sealant
- Requirement 3e
Away from traffic, mark off reaction and braking distances for an emergency stop on level dry and wet pavement at 25, 55, and 70 mph, using the pamphlet's template or one your counselor approves. Discuss how they change for normal vs. impaired drivers, day vs. night, and weather
- Requirement 4
Traffic safety and the law
Tips for this section: Ask a parent or officer what drivers should do after a crash or when stopped by police.
- Requirement 4a
Describe at least three traffic laws that apply to motor vehicle drivers and to bicyclists
- Requirement 4b
Explain what a driver should do, and how to behave, when pulled over by a police officer
- Requirement 4c
Explain what drivers should do if they're in a car crash
- Requirement 4d
Name the three documents drivers must legally carry whenever they drive
- Requirement 5
Road design and signs
Tips for this section: On your next ride, notice road designs and sign shapes and colors, and talk about what they mean.
Example for this section: Make a chart of sign shapes and colors: an octagon means stop, a triangle means yield, yellow diamonds warn of hazards, and orange signs mean work zones. Add one road design feature, like a roundabout or rumble strip, and explain how it prevents crashes.
- Requirement 5a
Explain how the design of intersections, medians, and shoulders makes roads safer, and discuss safety features of interstate highways
- Requirement 5b
Explain how sign colors and shapes help drivers understand them, and the purposes of different signs, signals, and pavement markings
- Requirement 6
Sharing the road
Tips for this section: Practice safe walking and biking habits, and talk about how drivers can watch for others.
Example for this section: Describe one tricky spot in your neighborhood, like a busy crosswalk or a road without a bike lane, and explain what drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians should each do there to stay safe.
- Requirement 6a
Describe how much more visible at night a lit bicycle and rider (or a pedestrian) in reflective gear are than an unlit rider (or pedestrian) in dark clothes without reflective material
- Requirement 6b
Name at least four safety steps pedestrians, including hikers, should take when walking along or crossing roads
- Requirement 6c
Name at least four safety steps drivers should take when approaching a school bus that is picking up or dropping off students
- Requirement 6d
Discuss the risks of blind spots around cars and trucks, and ways drivers can avoid lane-change crashes
- Requirement 7
Traffic safety in your community. Choose 1 of 3
Tips for this section: Choose the option that interests you most, like interviewing a police officer or leading a safety event.
Example for this section: If you organize an event, you might set up a seat belt check at a troop meeting, or a booth at a school event where people sign a no-texting-while-driving pledge. Plan it with your counselor and leaders.
- Requirement 7a
Interview a traffic police officer or traffic safety professional in your community about the three traffic safety problems that concern them most, then discuss ways to solve one of them with your counselor
- Requirement 7b
Write a personal traffic safety pledge covering three traffic safety issues that worry you most, and discuss it with your counselor
- Requirement 7c
Start and organize an activity or event that shows why traffic safety matters
- Requirement 8
Explore careers in traffic safety. Research one: training, education, costs, job outlook, pay, duties, and advancement (searches, interviews, or visits need a parent's or guardian's OK). Discuss with your counselor what you found and what makes it interesting to you
Tip: Look up careers like traffic engineer or police officer and what training they need.
Places to visit
Ask an adult to set it up, and go with your family, den, patrol, or crew.
A police station or traffic safety unit
Officers can show you crash investigation tools and explain what they see on the road.
How: Have a leader call the department's community relations office and ask if an officer can meet your troop.
A city or county traffic engineering office
Engineers can show you how they time traffic lights and decide where to put crosswalks and signs.
How: Have a leader call the public works or transportation department and ask whether staff could talk with your group.
Where it can lead
- Traffic engineerDesigns roads, intersections, and signals to keep traffic safe and moving.
- Police officer or state trooperEnforces traffic laws and responds to crashes.
- Driving instructorTeaches new drivers skills and safe habits.
- Automotive technicianA skilled trade that keeps vehicles' brakes, tires, and lights working safely.
- Emergency medical technicianResponds to crashes and gives care on the way to the hospital.
Ask yourself
- What habits have you noticed in drivers you ride with, good or not so good?
- How would you speak up if a driver you were riding with was distracted?
- What surprised you most about why crashes happen?
- What kind of driver do you want to be someday?
- What's one thing you can do now as a walker, rider, or passenger to be safer?
Good questions to ask a police officer or driving instructor
- What are the most common causes of crashes you see in our area?
- What do new drivers most often get wrong?
- What should a driver do right after a crash, step by step?
- How can passengers help a driver stay focused?
- What do you wish every teenager knew before getting a license?
Helpful reads
- Earning a merit badge, step by step, From picking a badge to getting the final signature: how to find a counselor, set up meetings safely, work the requirements, and keep your progress., Youth · Families · 6 min read
- Contacting counselors, experts, and organizations, Email and phone scripts, who to ask for, how to follow up, and how to say thanks, with a parent copied every time., Youth · Families · 7 min read
- Choosing your next merit badge, How to pick a badge you'll actually finish: start with what you care about, balance Eagle-required and just-for-fun badges, and make the most of camp., Youth · Families · 6 min read
For leaders & parents
- Invite a police officer or driving instructor to talk with scouts.
- Encourage parents to do the vehicle checkup alongside their scout.
People & places that can help
- Merit badge counselor — Talk with them early; they can explain what's expected.
- National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (opens in a new tab) — Information on vehicle and road safety.
- Local police department — Officers can talk about traffic laws and safety.
- Governors Highway Safety Association (opens in a new tab) — State traffic safety programs and facts about teen drivers.
- IIHS (opens in a new tab) — Crash test results and research on what makes vehicles and roads safer.
- AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety (opens in a new tab) — Research and tips on distracted and teen driving.
Pairs well with
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Tips, examples, and questions are ideas from experienced leaders, not extra requirements. Your unit leader or counselor decides when a requirement is complete.