DETROIT (WWJ) -- Slow down and save lives! That is the message from the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning, which says speeding is a critical issue that causes needless crashes, serious injuries and deaths on the state's roadways.
State officials say the problem has gotten worse since the COVID-19 pandemic began more than three years ago, with police agencies throughout Michigan continuing to report an alarming rise in speeding and fatal crashes.
To stem the troubling rise, Michigan State Police, along with county and municipal police agencies in Metro Detroit and across the state, are conducting a special speed enforcement campaign that runs through Sunday, June 25.
MSP Spl/Lt. DuWayne Robinson said the speeding is simply out of control.
"I am getting reports of people going 30-plus miles per hour over the posted speed limit; that's on I-94 and some of the M-roads," Robinson said. "And this is quite alarming to all of us — that people are having the nerve to go out and push their vehicles that fast, when you can't respond or react to situations as you normally would at normal speeds, and so putting themselves at risk, and other motorists at risk."
For the rest of this week, Robinson there will be more patrols out looking for dangerous drivers.
But they're not just going to be looking for people who are going too fast.
"In addition to watching for speeders, we'll also be paying attention to other violations, such as drivers or occupants not wearing their safety belts, distracted drivers — that would be drivers reading books, or looking at their cell phones, etc., etc... So we will be out in full-force."
The MOHSP said the number of people dying in speed-related crashes has increased in recent years. There were 237 deaths from speed-related crashes in Michigan in 2021, which is an increase of 18.5% over 2020.
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