July 21, 2008
Motorists be forewarned: run the red and you may be paying the price. Law enforcement agencies in 19 counties are patrolling high-crash intersections in their communities during Intersection Enforcement Week, July 20-26.
Agencies are conducting dedicated patrols at high-crash intersections with traffic signals in an effort to reduce crashes, injuries and deaths. The Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning (OHSP) is administering federal traffic safety funds for the Run the Red. Pay the Price. patrols.
"More than a quarter of Michigan traffic crashes and fatalities and a third of serious injuries occur in intersections," said Michael L. Prince, OHSP director. "We hope that by enforcing these locations, drivers will be more careful and cause fewer crashes."
Agencies analyzed local crash data to determine the high-crash intersections and the best time of day to set up enforcement patrols. In many areas, a spotter will alert other officers when a motorist runs a red light or commits another traffic violation in the intersection. Red-light runners face up to $120 in fines and three points on their driver licenses.
Twenty-eight percent of crashes in Michigan in 2007 occurred in intersections, according to the Michigan State Police, Criminal Justice Information Center. These intersection crashes resulted in 288 fatalities and 2,319 incapacitating injuries, accounting for 30 percent of traffic deaths and serious injuries.
Nearly 75 law enforcement agencies are taking part in grant-funded intersection patrols this week in the following counties: Barry, Eaton, Grand Traverse, Ingham, Ionia, Isabella, Kalamazoo, Lapeer, Lenawee, Livingston, Macomb, Mason, Muskegon, Oakland, Otsego, Ottawa, St. Joseph, Wayne and Wexford.
In addition, agencies have the option to conduct additional intersection patrols throughout the summer.
A list of planned times, dates and locations of intersection patrols is posted on OHSP's Web site, www.michigan.gov/ohsp.
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