MELVINDALE, Mich. (WXYZ) — Police in Melvindale are cracking down on dangerous driving after a wave of speeders.
I rode with police during the effort. They’re also highlighting efforts on social media to impact the community.
“What are some of the worst examples of speeding and reckless driving?” I asked Lt. Matthew Furman.
Down Schaffer Highway is a 35 mph zone and we’ve stopped cars doing 70, 80 and 90 mph,” Furman said. “Tearing through neighborhoods and doing double the speed limit with kids out playing.”
Hitting the streets with Furman in the heart of Melvindale, I got to see firsthand what it means to turn up the heat on speeders and other reckless drivers.
“We’re a very proactive police department. We’ve issued 6,500 tickets this year since January 1st, 1,300 or so of those are for speeding,” Furman said.
A post on social media is warning of zero tolerance in a city that’s less than 3 square miles.
While riding along, Furman stopped the driver of a Ford pickup truck doing more than 10 mph over the limit. After reviewing the stop and the violation, the lieutenant sent the strong message that police aren’t taking this lightly.
“This time, you are receiving a ticket,” Furman told the driver.
Minutes later on a patrol through neighborhoods, I asked families if they feel their voice has been heard and will make a difference.
“Do you hope penalties discourage speeding?” I asked one resident.
“Oh, yeah. Definitely,” resident Mary responded.
“It makes you feel better for sure because the kids just want to be kids, ride their bike, play with friends and basketball,” resident Pamela Richardson said.
“When they are patrolling, they’re stopping, talking to kids, tell them ‘hey, get out of the street,” resident Jacklyn Richardson said. “They’re engaging more into the community with the kids and try to make sure they’re more safe.”
I also called larger communities like Taylor and Sterling Heights to compare statistics. Police in Taylor told me they issued 16,000 for moving violations. In Sterling Heights, the tickets add up to more than 9,000, with more than 1,800 for speeding.
All of those violations are since Jan. 1.
For Furman, interactions with parents show just how much this means.
“(They’re) visibly very happy when they see up making traffic stops,” he said. “We’ve had resident come out, thank us after traffic stops, bring us Gatorade, bottles of water.”
Melvindale police say they plan to continue the enforcement with high visibility in order to be a deterrent for future speeding.
