Members of the Northville Township Police Department will join with Michigan State Police in an August safety campaign on area roadways throughout the community.
To bring more attention to Michigan's new distracted driving law, officers and troopers will be especially vigilant regarding drivers using a hand-held cell phone or mobile electronic device to text, talk on the phone, watch videos or go on social media while driving. Those actions are all now illegal according to recently enacted MCL 257.602b.
Patrol officers noticed consistent violations of the month-old law, putting all motorists lives in danger, prompting the month-long awareness campaign, officials said.
The statistics are compelling: the AAA-Foundation for Traffic Safety has found that drivers' overall crash risk “nearly doubled” when they were “engaging in all forms of visual-manual mobile phone tasks” and “visual-manual mobile phone interaction” while driving makes drivers three times more likely to be involved in a “road departure crash” and more than seven times more likely to cause a rear-end collision.
“Our core purpose as a police force is working for a safer community in Northville Township, and that focus encompasses our local roads,” said Police Chief Scott Hilden. “Public safety is at risk when drivers are distracted, and we want people to understand that's not acceptable.”
The new Michigan law a took effect June 30 and includes a “hands-free” exception. Previously, Michigan law only prohibited drivers from using a hand-held cell phone to text while driving.
The first violation is a $100 fine or 16 hours of community service or both. Penalties for repeated distracted driving include fines up to $250, up to 24 hours of community service, points on a person's driving record and driver improvement classes. Fines also are doubled for those at-fault in a crash while manually using a device.
“The new laws have been in effect for nearly a month giving drivers ample time to familiarize themselves with the restrictions and penalties,” Hilden continued. “As a result, we will be taking a serious approach to enforcing the new laws to remind drivers to remain alert and focused when they are behind the wheel.”
