Children ages 5-7 and 8-12 in Cassopolis and Dowagiac, we are coming to your town with Radkids. My Radkids partner, Officer Kevin Kosten and I will be holding a 3 day, 3 hours each day, Radkids instructional class for your town specifically. Call me at (269) 683-4411 and tell me names, ages, town, and if there are siblings attending. This is a free class. Next week I will post the dates.

Michigan State Police troopers are joining forces with five other state law enforcement agencies as part of a multi-state enforcement initiative targeting distracted driving. The “6-State Trooper Project” will be conducted from July 20-26, according to a statement from state police.

“In addition to focusing on distracted driving behaviors, troopers will also be on the lookout for seat belt use, speeding, aggressive and impaired driving,” said Col. Kriste Kibbey Etue, director of the Michigan State Police. “Multi-state initiatives such as this allow us to align resources with neighboring states to focus on improving traffic safety.”

Besides Michigan troopers, the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Kentucky State Police, Indiana State Police, Pennsylvania State Police and West Virginia State Police are participating in the enforcement effort. Police say this partnership provides combined and coordinated law enforcement services in the areas of highway safety, criminal patrol and intelligence sharing.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, distracted driving is any activity that could divert a person’s attention away from the primary task of driving. Distracted driving includes texting, using a cellphone, eating or drinking, talking to passengers, grooming, reading, using a navigational system, watching a video or adjusting a radio, CD player or MP3 player. More than 3,000 people were killed nationwide in distracted-affected crashes in 2012.

There are three types of distractions: visual, manual and cognitive. Visual involves taking your eyes off the road, manual consists of taking your hands off the wheel and cognitive involves taking your mind off what you’re doing.

Texting while driving is especially dangerous because it requires the visual, manual and cognitive attention of the driver. Sending or receiving a text takes a driver’s eyes from the road for an average of 4.6 seconds, which at 55 mph is equivalent to driving the length of a football field.

Here are some tips to help decrease distracted driving:

• Get familiar with vehicle features and equipment before driving.

• Preset radio stations, MP3 devices and climate control.

• Secure items that may move around when the car is in motion. Do not reach down or behind the seat to pick up items.

• Do not text, access the Internet, watch videos, play video games, search MP3 devices or use any other distracting technology while driving.

• Avoid smoking, eating, drinking and reading while driving.

• Pull safely off the road and out of traffic to deal with children.

• Do personal grooming at home — not in the vehicle.

• Review maps and driving directions before hitting the road.

• Ask a passenger to help with activities that may be distracting.

• If driving long distances, schedule regular stops to take a break, every 100 miles or two hours.

• Travel at times when you are normally awake and stay overnight rather than driving straight through the night.

• Avoid alcohol and medications that may make you drowsy.

For more information about distracted driving, visit www.michigan.gov/msp.

 

Rob Herbstreith is a Michigan State Police trooper. Questions or comments can be emailed to TrooperRob53@yahoo.com