July 3 — Traffic police Day: history and traditions of the holiday, how to congratulate

Every year on July 3, Russia celebrates Traffic Police Day, a professional holiday for employees of the State Traffic Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs who monitor road safety, arrange accidents, work with drivers and pedestrians and help prevent accidents. In 2026, the date falls on Friday. Read about the history of the service, the traditions of the holiday and who is congratulated on this day in the Izvestia article.

Traffic police Day – 2026: the history of the holiday and profession

The official holiday was established on July 3, 2009. On this day, the Minister of Internal Affairs of Russia Rashid Nurgaliyev signed an order "On the announcement of the Day of the State Road Safety Inspection of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation."

The date was not chosen by chance — on July 3, 1936, the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR approved the Regulations on the State Automobile Inspection of the Main Directorate of the Workers' and Peasants' Militia of the NKVD of the USSR. This day is considered the starting point of the history of the modern Traffic police.

The need for such a service arose long before the advent of the official holiday. At the beginning of the 20th century, the streets of major cities were rapidly changing, and cars were increasingly appearing next to horse-drawn carriages, trams, and pedestrians. It became more difficult to control the movement. In August 1919, the first traffic police was organized in Moscow. At that time, there were about 2,500 vehicles in the capital, including about a thousand trucks, about 100 passenger buses and 740 tram cars. For a city accustomed to different speeds and a different rhythm, it was a serious strain.

The next stage occurred in the 1920s. At the end of 1925, the Department of Traffic Regulation (ORD) appeared in Moscow. His staff directed the flow of traffic, kept order at intersections, and helped reduce the number of accidents. In 1932, centralized accounting of accidents and their consequences began, which became an important step towards systematic accident management.

Family row with shoulder straps

Dynasties in the service of the State Traffic Inspectorate

The 1936 decree brought road control to a new level. The State Automobile Inspectorate was tasked with combating accidents, accounting for cars, monitoring driver training and developing technical standards for the operation of cars.

In 1938, the formation of local traffic police departments began, and already in 1939, increased attention to accident prevention and road safety promotion. At the same time, the first general rules of movement on the streets of cities and roads of the USSR were developed in order to bring disparate practices to a more understandable and unified order.

During the Great Patriotic War, many employees of the State Traffic Inspectorate went to the front. Those who remained in the rear were engaged in the culling and decommissioning of cars, issuing driver's licenses, controlling the use of spare parts, and monitoring the technical condition of vehicles.

After the war, the country gradually returned to peaceful life, and the car ceased to be a rarity. As the number of cars increased, so did the risks on the roads. The State Traffic Inspectorate has a task that remains key to this day — to reduce accidents and the number of deaths in road accidents. In 1961, the first uniform Rules of the Road for the whole country came into force in the USSR. Prior to that, the regions had their own regulations, speed limits, traffic lights, and intersection rules were different.

After the collapse of the USSR, the service went through several renames in modern Russia. In June 1998, by presidential decree, the State Automobile Inspectorate (GAI) The Ministry of Internal Affairs was renamed the State Road Safety Inspectorate (GIBDD). The new name was supposed to more accurately reflect the main task of the department — not just to control cars, but to ensure safety on the roads.

Today, the work of the road inspection is impossible without photo and video cameras, digital databases, automated accounting and analytics systems. But the equipment did not replace the inspector. At the scene of an accident, with difficult traffic closures, during bad weather, evacuation, mass events or communication with the driver, you still need a person who knows how to quickly assess the situation and make a decision. Therefore, Traffic Police Day remains a holiday for professionals, on whom the safety of millions of road users directly depends.

Traditions of celebrating Traffic Police Day

On July 3, solemn formations and official meetings are held in the departments of the State Traffic Inspectorate, the best employees are awarded certificates of honor, commendations, departmental insignia and medals, and new titles are awarded.

Veterans of the State Traffic Inspectorate are also congratulated on this day. The units arrange meetings with former employees, recall the history of the service, difficult duty, high-profile operations, as well as colleagues who died in the line of duty.

Concerts, car rallies, exhibitions of office equipment, demonstrations, and demonstrations of special equipment are organized in the regions in honor of the holiday. Inspectors tell us how patrol cars, communications equipment, violation detection devices, speed control systems and other tools that help maintain order on the roads work.

Traffic police officers hold meetings with schoolchildren and kindergarten students, remind them about the rules of crossing the road, behavior near the carriageway, the use of retroreflective elements and seat belts.

Who and how to congratulate on July 3rd — the best gift ideas and wishes

On July 3, congratulations were received by current employees of the State Traffic Inspectorate, inspectors of the highway patrol service, employees of administrative law enforcement units, specialists from registration and examination departments, employees of technical supervision services, road safety propaganda, traffic police veterans, cadets and teachers of specialized educational institutions. Izvestia has prepared several examples of how this can be done.:

"Congratulations on Traffic Police Day! Your service requires endurance and patience. May every duty end safely, and at home they always wait with warmth, respect and pride. We wish you to meet more often not violators on the road, but people who understand the value of care and responsibility. Have quiet shifts, accurate decisions and reliable partners!"

"Congratulations on your professional holiday! Your work really makes the roads safer. We wish that the radar was silent more often, the reports were calm, the equipment did not fail, and the people behind the wheel remembered that order on the road does not begin with a fine, but with internal discipline. Happy State Traffic Inspectorate Day!"

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"Congratulations on Traffic Police Day! May the service be clear, the decisions verified, the roads safe, and difficult situations be avoided without losses."

"Happy Traffic Police Day! We wish you a green light in important matters, reliable logistics, attentive drivers and colleagues with whom you can go through any difficult shift. May there be more grateful people in this difficult job, fewer dangerous challenges and as many shifts as possible, after which you can safely say that the day was not in vain."

"Congratulations on your professional holiday! Let your decisions help prevent trouble before it happens, and experience, self-control, and a sense of justice work more accurately than any technique. Good health, peaceful roads and well-deserved respect."

Gift Ideas for Traffic Police Day

• a diary or planner in a strict cover is useful for work notes, office notes and personal plans.;
• A thermocup or thermos is a practical gift for those who spend a lot of time on duty, on patrol or on the road.;
• A compact flashlight with powerful light is a thing that can help out when examining a car at night, working at an accident site or in bad weather.;
• An external battery is useful on a long shift to recharge your phone, navigator, or other devices.;
• High—quality gloves are a useful gift for cold duty and outdoor work.;
• a keychain, pen or flask with a laconic personal engraving is a good choice if you want to leave a memorable item.;
• a car pillow, a blanket or a comfortable thermal box are useful for those who often spend time in a company car or drive a lot.;
• headphones, a portable speaker, a book, a sports accessory or a certificate are a suitable option for a loved one if you want to congratulate a friend, husband, father, brother or colleague outside the service on a professional holiday.

Earlier, Izvestia listed the main traditions of sailors on Navy Day.