(CENTREVILLE) – The St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department will take part in a special enforcement effort in April.

In support of National Distracted Driving Month, the Sheriff’s Department is teaming up with the Michigan Office Of Highway Safety Planning for a high-visibility enforcement effort call “U Drive, U Text, U Pay”.

During the month of April, law enforcement officers will remind drivers about the dangers of distracted driving while enforcing Michigan’s Texting While Driving Law. The goal of the initiative is to reduce traffic crashes caused by distracted drivers, ultimately preventing injuries and deaths associated with cell phone use and texting while driving.

According to Michigan Traffic Crash Facts, there were 16,542 motor vehicle crashes involving a distracted driver in Michigan during 2021. 59 of those crashes resulted in a fatality.

Research shows that Millenials and Generation Z are the most
distracted drivers, often using their cell phones to talk, text, and scroll through social media while behind the wheel. Only 6.7% of Michigan drivers are under the age of 21, but that same group accounted for 18.1% of the distracted driving crashes in 2021.

Violating Michigan’s Texting While Driving Law can be costly. A $100 ticket will be issued for a first offense, and a $200 ticket for each subsequent offense.