Highway robbery refers to the act of stealing from travelers on public roads, often involving threats or violence. This crime was particularly common in the 17th and 18th centuries, when bandits would ambush coaches and carriages. The term is often associated with the infamous Dick Turpin, a notorious English highwayman. The practice of highway robbery declined with the improvement of law enforcement and the establishment of more secure transportation methods. Today, the term is sometimes used metaphorically to describe any form of theft or extortion that occurs in a public setting, though it no longer refers to the literal act of robbing travelers on highways.