Michigan’s New Cell Phone Law Goes After Distracted Drivers: How Residents Feel About It

Gretchen Whitmer, the governor of Michigan, recently signed three bills implementing new standards related to using cell phones while on the road. The newly established laws only allow drivers to use hands-free devices while driving, banning cell phone use except for emergencies.

The laws, which will come into effect on June 30, will enable traffic personnel to impose fines on people caught using their phones while driving. Michigan is the 26th state to have implemented laws related to hands-free driving. As per statistics by the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning, the state witnessed around 2,765 crashes related to cell phone use in 2021. Twenty-one of these involved fatalities. However, advocates of the bills are optimistic that the implementation of the new law will help save many lives.

A Possibility For Safer Roads
Distracted driving is quite common in Michigan, and residents think the new law may help decrease its occurrences. As per the new law, drivers found to be using their phones while driving will need to pay a fine of $100 and/or 16 hours of community service for the first offense. For each subsequent offense, they will be penalized with a fine of $250 and/or 24 hours of community service. The fine will be doubled for drivers who get into a crash due to cell phone use. Drivers of school buses and commercial vehicles will also be subjected to a higher fine.

Residents have welcomed these strict measures, and many feel that the penalties will help discourage drivers from using their phones while on the road. As a result, it has received increasing support from the residents.

As per a resident who supports this law, just looking down to answer a text can distract a driver from what’s in front, causing them to run into a person or object. And these could be easily avoided if the drivers went distracted by their phones in the first place. The new law may gradually help change the phone habits of the driver, thereby making roads safer.

A Few Concerns
However, while the decision has been well received among the residents of the state, many have expressed concerns over its enforcement. One resident, who is a postdoctoral research fellow at Michigan State University, while applauding the government for trying to address this issue, also voiced her concerns about the possible misuse of the law. She is worried that the law may be used to add further penalties for people from poor communities and people of color, who usually face heavier surveillance and discrimination daily.

However, some other residents are of the opinion that while the uneven enforcement of the new laws may initially be an issue due to the existing biases on race, it is a good sign that people are increasingly speaking up against it. And as long as they continue to speak out, there is a chance that there will be fewer occurrences of discrimination.

But that’s not the sole concern. Another resident noted that he sees a high prevalence of texting while driving on the roads, despite a law already being in place that bans this activity. And this raises questions about how effectively the new law can be enforced in the state.

As per Milwaukee car accident lawyers, texting while driving was prohibited in Michigan in 2010. However, residents agree that a large number of people tend to text behind the wheel and get away with it without any problems. So, even after the implementation of the new law, many drivers may choose to use their phones when there isn’t traffic personnel around.