(WWJ) Put down your phone, stay alert, and drive with caution.
Oakland County law enforcement is on patrol this week for "Operation Ghost Rider" — targeting dangerous, distracted drivers.
The Oakland County Sheriff's Office announced that its Traffic Unit will be doing extra enforcement to fight distracted driving along the M-59 corridor on Oct. 21 and 28 as part of the "Operation Ghost Rider" effort.
The OCSO said deputies will be patrolling M-59 in both marked and unmarked vehicles for the next week. Unmarked “spotter” vehicles have an officer in the passenger seat. When the spotter sees a distracted driver, a marked police vehicle will be notified to make a traffic stop.
According to Sheriff Mike Bouchard, distracted driving is just as dangerous as drunk driving, and it's also tragically the cause of too many deadly crashes. They'll be looking for people texting and driving, watching videos and driving and more as the operation aims to reduce distracted driving-related crashes and promote safer habits on the road.
Not driving distracted, officials say, is extra important in the fall with so many deer out and about on the roads in the county.
What counts as distracted driving?
In June of 2023, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed a bill into law making the manual use of a cell phone or other mobile electronic device while operating a vehicle illegal. The law made it illegal for a driver to hold a phone with their hands, arms or shoulders as well as making it illegal to operate the device using more than a single touch.
Prohibited activities include texting, entering information into GPS and posting to social media.
Authorities say that drivers who are texting are 23 times more likely to be involved in a crash.