NYPD Spatial Orientation Flashcards

An officer is traveling north on Madison Avenue and turns left at the next intersection. In which direction is the officer now traveling?

Answer: West

A left turn from northbound travel results in westbound travel.

A suspect fled from the corner of 5th Ave and 42nd St heading east for 3 blocks, then turned south for 2 blocks. What is the suspect's current location?

Answer: 2nd Ave and 40th St

Moving east 3 blocks from 5th Ave reaches 2nd Ave; moving south 2 blocks from 42nd St reaches 40th St.

Officer Chen is facing south. She turns 90 degrees to her right. In which direction is she now facing?

Answer: West

A 90-degree clockwise (right) turn from south results in facing west.

A patrol car is at the intersection of Oak St and Elm Ave. The officer drives 4 blocks north, then 2 blocks east. What is the minimum number of blocks the officer must drive to return to the starting point by the fastest grid route?

Answer: 6 blocks

To return, the officer drives 4 blocks south and 2 blocks west (or any combination), totaling 6 blocks on the grid.

A map shows Pine St running east-west and Oak Ave running north-south. A witness says the robbery occurred north of Pine St and west of Oak Ave. In which quadrant did it occur?

Answer: Northwest

North of Pine St and west of Oak Ave places the location in the northwest quadrant.

Officers must travel from Precinct A to Hospital B: 6 blocks east and 4 blocks north. If the officer goes north first, what is the total number of blocks traveled?

Answer: 10 blocks

On a grid, total blocks = sum of distances: 6 + 4 = 10 blocks regardless of order traveled.

A vehicle was last seen heading west on Central Blvd. After turning right twice, in which direction is the vehicle heading?

Answer: East

From west: first right turn faces north; second right turn faces east.

Officer Rivera is at Point X. Point Y is directly northeast of Point X. If Officer Rivera walks toward Point Y, which two cardinal directions is she simultaneously moving toward?

Answer: North and East

Northeast is the direction midway between north and east, so movement toward it has both a northward and an eastward component.

A street map shows River Road running diagonally from the southwest corner to the northeast corner of the map. An officer driving from southwest to northeast on River Road is generally heading in which direction?

Answer: Northeast

Traveling from a southwest point to a northeast point means the general direction of travel is northeast.

A complainant states the fire escape is on the south side of the building on Park Place. The building's front entrance faces north. Which side of the building has the fire escape?

Answer: The rear of the building

If the front faces north, the rear faces south, so the fire escape on the south side is at the rear.

Officers are setting up a perimeter around a block bounded by 1st St to the north, 2nd St to the south, A Ave to the west, and B Ave to the east. An officer on the east side of the block is standing on which street or avenue?

Answer: B Ave

B Ave forms the eastern boundary of the block, so an officer on the east side stands on B Ave.

A robbery suspect is hiding at the northwest corner of Grant St and Lewis Ave. An officer approaching from the south along Lewis Ave will reach which corner of the intersection first?

Answer: Southeast corner

Traveling north on Lewis Ave, the officer enters the southern end of the intersection, reaching the southeast corner first (before crossing to the northwest).

A patrol map shows a one-way street running from east to west. An officer needs to reach a location to the east. What must the officer do?

Answer: Both B and C are correct options

Since the one-way street only allows westbound travel, the officer must use another eastbound street or drive west and circle around.

During foot pursuit, Officer Kim chases a suspect who runs: 1 block north, 2 blocks east, 1 block south, and 2 blocks west. Where is the suspect relative to the starting point?

Answer: At the starting point

1 north and 1 south cancel; 2 east and 2 west cancel — the suspect returns to the exact starting point.

A witness says a collision occurred 'two blocks south and three blocks east' of the police station at Main St and Center Ave. Which intersection had the collision?

Answer: Two blocks south of Main St, three blocks east of Center Ave

Moving two blocks south of Main St and three blocks east of Center Ave gives the described intersection.

On a standard map with north at the top, a location marked in the lower-right portion of the map is in which general direction from the map's center?

Answer: Southeast

Lower on the map equals south; right side of the map equals east, so lower-right is southeast.

Officer Thompson is facing east and does an about-face. In which direction is she now facing?

Answer: West

An about-face is a 180-degree turn, so from east the officer now faces west.

A dispatcher tells Officer Brown: 'The scene is on the south side of the street.' If Officer Brown is standing on the north side of the street and turns to face the scene, in which direction is he facing?

Answer: South

To face a scene on the south side of the street from the north side, the officer faces south.

Two officers are assigned to opposite ends of a north-south alley. Officer A is at the north end; Officer B is at the south end. They walk toward each other. What direction is each officer walking?

Answer: Officer A walks south; Officer B walks north

Officer A at the north end walks south toward Officer B; Officer B at the south end walks north toward Officer A.

A building's front (address side) faces west. An officer is told to guard the north side of the building. Standing on the street west of the building and facing the building (facing east), the north side is to the officer's:

Answer: Left

Facing east toward the building, the officer's left is north and right is south — so the north side of the building is to the officer's left.