'Operation Ghostrider' Cracks Down On Distracted Driving

MACOMB COUNTY, MI — Memo to drivers traveling along Hall Road in Macomb County this week — put cell phones away, save the Taco Bell for later and don’t groom in the rearview mirror because the cops are watching. “Operation Ghostrider,” featuring a consortium of area law enforcement agencies, aims to curb distracted driving. Get pulled over, and it could mean a $150 ticket.

Enforcement will focus on Hall Road between Dequindre on the Macomb-Oakland County border to Heydenreich around Clinton Township. Distracted drivers will likely be getting traffic tickets rather than warnings this week, according to police officials. It’s all about safety, they say, because distracted driving is involved in about 80 percent of all car crashes.

"I don't want you to think we're being sneaky," Michigan State Police Capt. Monica Yesh said at a recent news conference announcing Operation Ghostrider. "The life you could save could be your own."

Officers from the state police, Sterling Heights, Shelby and Clinton townships and the Macomb County Sheriff's Office are to participate in the effort, according to a Detroit Free Press report. Yesh told the newspaper she has seen motorists doing just about everything behind the wheel, including a woman eating a bowl of cereal while steering the car with her knees.

The concept for the operation is straightforward. A law enforcement officer will be a passenger in an unmarked vehicle riding on Hall Road looking for distracted drivers, authorities said. The officer then will radio marked police units in vehicles and on motorcycles who will stop distracted drivers, the Free Press reported.

A ticket could be issued for distracted driving, a fine that authorities said could be around $150 and no points on a driver's record, or careless driving, which carries a heftier fine, depending on the court, and three points on a driver's record, the newspaper reported. If successful, the operation could be rolled out across Michigan.

Law enforcement personnel said they can pull over a driver for texting while driving, running a red light, speeding or aggressive driving, such as weaving in and out of traffic lanes without signaling. The U.S. Department of Transportation says that drivers who use a hand-held device are four times more likely to get into a crash serious enough to cause an injury, the Free Press reported. Texting drivers are 23 times more likely to be involved in a crash, according to a news release on this week's enforcement effort.

Operation Ghostrider isn’t the only measure underway to reduce distracted driving in Michigan. Jim Santilli, CEO of the Transportation Improvement Association, said legislation to help reduce fatalities, injuries and crashes was introduced in Lansing, the Free Press reported.

The bill, which had bipartisan support, would outlaw use of cell phones and other devices while driving unless the device is specifically designed and configured to allow voice-operated and hands-free operation and is being used in that manner, according to a news release about the bill, the newspaper reported. The bill requires that a driver must be able to activate or deactivate a function on the device with a single swipe or tap of their finger for it to be legal, and the device must also be safely mounted on the windshield, dashboard, or center console in a manner that does not hinder the driver's view of the road.

Violators would receive a civil infraction ticket, beginning with a $250 fine for the first violation, the Free Press reported. A second violation would result in a $500 fine and one point on their driving record. A third or subsequent violation carries a $500 fine and two points, according to the release about the proposed legislation.

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