Michigan police are looking to combat a rise in fatal crashes by cracking down on speeding drivers.
In 2020, Michigan traffic deaths rose by 10% despite a drastic drop in overall traffic. Nationally, the number of U.S. traffic deaths in the first six months of 2021 hit 20,160, the highest first-half total since 2006.
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“Despite the fact there have been less miles traveled, the fatality rate rose. And crash data shows that speed may have been a factor in many of these preventable crashes,” said Michael L. Prince, OHSP director. “It’s no secret the faster you drive, the greater your risk of dying in a crash. We hope increased enforcement over the coming months will help change these dangerous driving behaviors and save lives.”
Related: List of Michigan’s 10 most dangerous roads
To combat this deadly and dangerous trend, the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning (OHSP) is announcing that more than 100 municipal, county, and Michigan State Police (MSP) law enforcement agencies will focus on speeding drivers between December 1, 2021 and February 28, 2022.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), a crash on a road with a speed limit of 65 mph or greater is more than twice as likely to result in a fatality than a crash on a road with a speed limit of 45 or 50 mph. Nationally in 2019, 9,478 traffic fatalities involved crashes in which one or more drivers were speeding.
Recent insurance industry studies show that approximately 112,000 speeding tickets are issued each day, or about 41 million per year. The average fine for a speeding violation is between $115-$135.
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