ALLEGAN, MI (WHTC-AM/FM, Apr. 3, 2026) – Law enforcement in Michigan apparently mean business when it comes to cracking down on distracted driving.
State police troopers were joined by colleagues from Indiana, as well as Ontario Provincial Police and local law enforcement officers, in a “Lake to Lake, Focused and Safe” sweep on Wednesday of the entire length of I-94 in Michigan, from the Indiana state line near New Buffalo to the Blue Water Bridge in Port Huron. It was believed to be the first ever joint international distracted driving enforcement operation in North America.
It kicked off a series of high-visibility efforts centered around April being National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, as proclaimed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The state Office of Highway Safety Planning has cited statistics, complied through a recent observational study by researchers at Michigan State University, which showed mobile device use by drivers rose a half a percentage point in 2025, to 5.7 percent. This despite the state’s hands-free law, which took effect on June 30th of 2023.
Allegan County Sheriff Frank Baker has his deputies participating in this enforcement initiative.
According to Michigan Traffic Crash Facts, crashes involving a distracted driver dropped in 2024, the last year such statistics are available, but the number of fatalities rose to 65 people.
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