Law enforcement to target Telegraph, Van Horn in distracted driving crackdown - Southgate News Herald
Despite the warnings not to text, eat, put on makeup, surf the internet and all other things that cause drivers to be distracted, the number of crashes continue to pile up.
Wayne County Commissioner Raymond Basham (D-Taylor) is joining with representatives of the Wayne County Sheriff’s Department and Brownstown Township police to help bring a stop to that.
The two police agencies will begin working together to enforce and educate drivers about Michigan’s distracted driving laws.
Township Police Chief Jeff Watson said through a joint initiative officers will be out on roads from 1 to 6 p.m. April 14. After the launch, township police will step up its efforts to identify multitasking drivers.
The initiative will also be coming to area Downriver communities in the near future.
For now, officers will concentrate on the areas of Telegraph Road, between Pennsylvania down just south of Van Horn Road.
Van Horn Road also will be a part of the surveillance looking for distracted drivers.
The chief said the attention focused on Van Horn will begin about the time Woodhaven High School dismisses students.
He said it is imperative that younger drivers are sent a message just how dangerous distracted driving is for everyone.
Watson said his department was contacted by Basham with the idea to partner in this effort and the chief said he agreed.
He said Basham is looking to strengthen laws on distracted driving, but this initiative is aimed at awareness.
Basham said he recalls when motorists were resistant to other laws, such as seatbelts, booster seats and moving over a lane for stopped law enforcement and people eventually became more receptive to abiding by those laws.
According to Basham, even when motorists are given a heads up on these type initiatives, officers still catch numerous violators.
Basham stressed that this is not being done for the sake of revenue, it’s being done to save lives.
The commissioner said distracted motorists have been known to stop at a red light and start texting. When the light turns green, he said they are still texting trying to finish their message.
When they do take off, he said they often end up crossing into oncoming traffic.
The goal, Basham said, it to get people to stop putting a phone in front of their face when they drive.
“We get a lot of rear-end crashes on Telegraph,” Watson said. “We will be enforcing what is on the books right now and letting people know that it is very unsafe.”
In this initiative, the police chief said the department is looking to stop drivers before a crash happens. All too often, Watson said, people are stopped after a crash or an unfortunate incident occurs.
“We are trying to change some behaviors,” Watson said.
Basham was clear that this is not a sole focus on youths.
“This is an initiative to change the mindset of people,” Basham said.
Of all the different ways drivers can be distracted in a vehicle, Watson said the most common seen by his officers still has to be texting while the car is in motion.
The township chief said research has shown that texting and driving is just about equivalent to driving with a blood-alcohol content of .08, which in Michigan is considered to be legally drunk.
Michigan law prohibits distracted driving, which can result in a $100 fine with increased penalties for recurring offenses.
Prior to fanning out to kick off the initiative on the roadways, the two police agencies, along with Basham, will meet at the Brownstown Police Department to discuss their plans.
Basham said Brownstown officials have always been supportive and that is one of the reasons he wanted to launch the initiative in the township.
According to Michigan Traffic Crash Facts, 13,236 motor vehicle crashes occurred in the state during 2020 involving a distracted driver.
source: https://www.thenewsherald.com/2022/04/13/law-enforcement-to-target-telegraph-van-horn-in-distracted-driving-crackdown/
Your content is great. However, if any of the content contained herein violates any rights of yours, including those of copyright, please contact us immediately by e-mail at media[@]kissrpr.com.