APRIL 30, 2004

East Lansing.  Members of the Michigan State Police, Indiana State Police, Ohio State Highway Patrol, and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration joined forces on April 29, 2004, in a commercial motor vehicle safety enforcement blitz along the shared borders of the three states.

A total of 97 troopers, motor carrier officers, and federal safety inspectors stopped 341 CMVs for a variety of violations, including speeding, unsafe equipment, overweight and operating a commercial motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol.  A total of 990 safety violations were detected and 64 vehicles and 18 drivers were placed out of service for serious violations.  There were 293 citations and 263 verbal warnings also issued during this enforcement initiative.

The objective of this multi-state enforcement blitz was to identify unsafe and illegal commercial vehicle operations and raise awareness among trucking operators that unsafe practices that jeopardize public safety will not be tolerated.  Capt. Robert R. Powers, Jr., commander of the Michigan State Police Motor Carrier Division called this effort an "overwhelming success" and stated that similar operations will be conducted in the future.

Recently released crash statistics for 2003 show that the number of fatal crashes involving a commercial motor vehicle and the number of persons killed in CMV crashes in Michigan decreased significantly when compared to 2002.  In 2003, 122 persons lost their lives in 111 crashes involving a commercial motor vehicle, compared to 151 fatalities in 132 crashes during 2002.  This represents a 19% reduction in fatalities.

Read more press releases from the Michigan State Police.