Highway Patrol has actually been the title of two different TV shows: a classic 1950s American crime drama and a modern Australian factual series that’s still well known today.

What is the Highway Patrol TV show?

There are two main series people mean when they say “highway patrol tv show”:

  • A 1955–1959 American action‑crime drama starring Broderick Crawford as a tough State Highway Patrol chief chasing criminals across rural highways.
  • A 2009–present Australian factual/reality series following real Victoria Police Highway Patrol officers dealing with dangerous driving, crashes, and road crime.

Both focus on police work on the roads, but one is scripted drama and the other is real‑life policing.

Quick Scoop on the two shows

1. American Highway Patrol (1955–1959)

  • Type: Action crime drama, syndicated across the U.S.
  • Premise: Episodes are “based on authentic stories” from highway patrol case files, with officers pursuing smugglers, hijackers, robbers, and other criminals.
  • Tone & style:
    • Fast‑paced half‑hour stories, lots of tense standoffs and shootouts rather than big modern car‑crash set pieces.
* Famous for location shooting around California’s San Fernando Valley and Simi Valley, then largely rural.

* Strong, clipped line delivery by Broderick Crawford and a semi‑documentary narration style.
  • Production notes:
    • 156 episodes over 4 seasons, produced for syndication.
* Used technical advisors (including a serving California Highway Patrol officer) to keep procedure realistic.

* Early seasons used real CHP patrol cars with disguised insignia, and CHP‑style uniforms.
  • Legacy & trivia:
    • Described as “one of the most popular syndicated series in television history.”
* First American TV series broadcast on West German TV (ZDF).

* Featured many future stars in guest roles, including Clint Eastwood, Leonard Nimoy, Barbara Eden, and Larry Hagman.

If you like vintage black‑and‑white police shows with tight, no‑nonsense storytelling, this one sits in the same nostalgic space as Dragnet or Sea Hunt.

2. Australian Highway Patrol (2009– )

  • Type: Factual/reality series (sometimes called “obs‑doc”).
  • Network & format:
    • Airs on the Seven Network in Australia.
* Launched in 2009 and has run for 13 seasons plus specials, with more than 120 regular episodes.
  • Premise:
    • Follows Victoria Police Highway Patrol officers as they:
      • Stop high‑speed drivers and hoons.
      • Attend serious crashes and major road incidents.
      • Deal with drunk and drug‑affected drivers.
      • Issue infringement notices and explain the penalties.
  • Structure & style:
    • Each episode tracks a handful of real incidents from first stop to resolution.
* A narrator (Hugh Wade) gives context and ties together the call‑outs.

* Fines, court outcomes, and demerit points often appear in a short wrap‑up at the end of each case.
  • Why people watch it now:
    • Mix of road‑safety education, real‑world drama, and some unintentionally funny or bizarre driver excuses.
* Fits into the popular “on‑duty police” reality niche alongside shows about motorway patrols in other countries.

If you enjoy real dash‑cam style encounters and seeing what actually happens on the roadside, the Australian Highway Patrol leans heavily into that real‑life tension and education angle.

Side‑by‑side look

Here’s a quick HTML‑table style comparison of the two main Highway Patrol series:

html

<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th>Feature</th>
      <th>Highway Patrol (American)</th>
      <th>Highway Patrol (Australian)</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <td>Type</td>
      <td>Scripted action crime drama[web:3]</td>
      <td>Factual / reality police series[web:1][web:5]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Country</td>
      <td>United States[web:3]</td>
      <td>Australia[web:1]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Original run</td>
      <td>1955–1959 (4 seasons, 156 episodes)[web:2][web:3][web:9]</td>
      <td>2009– (13+ seasons, 120+ episodes & specials)[web:1]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Main focus</td>
      <td>Chasing and arresting criminals on highways (robbers, smugglers, etc.)[web:3]</td>
      <td>Real highway patrol work: speeding, drunk driving, crashes, hoons[web:1][web:5]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Lead / cast</td>
      <td>Broderick Crawford as Chief Dan Matthews[web:2][web:3][web:9]</td>
      <td>Real Victoria Police officers, narrated by Hugh Wade[web:1][web:5]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Visual style</td>
      <td>Black-and-white, rural California locations, quick cutting[web:2][web:9]</td>
      <td>Modern reality look, in‑car cameras, roadside footage[web:1][web:5]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Claim to fame</td>
      <td>Hugely popular syndicated 1950s series; first American show on West German TV[web:3][web:8]</td>
      <td>Long‑running Aussie staple of road‑policing TV[web:1][web:10]</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

Any “latest news” or trending chatter?

  • The Australian series has continued into the 2020s with new seasons and episode drops, keeping it in rotation on TV and streaming in Australia and some international markets.
  • The 1950s American show lives on mainly via reruns, DVD sets, and full episodes on video platforms, where classic‑TV fans still discuss the pacing, locations, and guest stars in comments and forums.

If you tell me which one you’re most interested in (the classic American drama or the modern Australian reality show), I can drill into cast, where to watch, and standout episodes for that specific Highway Patrol series.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.