CENTENNIAL, Colo.— For Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Deputy Dennis Dempsey, every day on the job is unpredictable.
"I've been in law enforcement for 28 years," he said, "I see many, many crashes."
But lately, the chances of responding to crashes have been lower. After receiving a $265,000 federal grant, the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office increased its patrols in Centennial.
"Prior to the traffic grant, there was a 41% increase of serious bodily injury traffic crashes from one year to the next," Dempsey explained.
Since the increased patrols began in April 2024, the City of Centennial reports a 12% decrease in crashes, as well as a 40% increase in traffic stops.
City officials said they've been working to address crashes since 2022, when city engineers started implementing traffic calming measures.
"We really try to work collaboratively with our residents and proactively in order to try to make permanent, functional changes in that built environment," said traffic engineer Anna Bunce.
The traffic calming measures have been concentrated in neighborhoods and on smaller roads. The city said its partnership with the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office has been instrumental in increasing safety efforts overall. Deputy Dempsey pointed to the intersection at South Peoria Street and East Easter Avenue as an example.
“It was an uncontrolled intersection, meaning that the left turn arrow was blinking yellow. This created a large amount of crashes," he explained. "Now it has a steady light causing vehicles to stop and not make a left turn in front of traffic."
Dempsey said there has been a 300% decrease in crashes at that intersection alone.
The work's not done. City officials just finished a citywide safety action plan to improve street safety even more.
"If a person drives by and sees a marked patrol car and slows down, I've done my job," Dempsey said. "It's an accident that I probably will not have to go to, and that’s great for everybody."