Dearborn police step up reckless driving enforcement

CBS News

05-03-2025

The mayor of Dearborn and police chief sent letters Tuesday to all of the local driving schools in the city. The message is to help the city keep our roads and young drivers protected.
Every day, thousands of cars travel on the roadways in the city of Dearborn.
"We have over 50,000 cars that are coming through our city each and every single day," said Detroit Mayor Abdullah H. Hammoud.
Which is why the city and police department are making it a priority to step up enforcement and stop reckless driving.
"Honestly, it's the number one issue in the city, period," Hammoud said.
According to the Dearborn Police Department Transparency Dashboard, officers issued 25,000 citations last year, including almost 4,000 for speeding, around 1,600 for disregarding a stop sign and more than 850 for illegally tinted windows.
"Tickets alone aren't going to solve this issue, and so that's why we're focused on a number of things to try to reduce traffic crashes and improve traffic safety," said Dearborn Police Chief Issa Shahin.
The majority of those violations were by young drivers between the ages of 17 and 24.
"The leading cause of death among young adults is injuries and traffic crashes, and so that's why it's important to us," Shahin said.
The city recently completed several traffic studies of various intersections throughout the city, on intersections like Ruby and Chase streets, as well as Prospect and Schafer roads.
The mayor says these roads will be reengineered this summer to help prevent speeding and other reckless driving activity.
"We have a whole number of projects in the pipeline that we're working through as quickly as we can. We're applying for grant funding year-round, and we've been successful last year, and those are the dollars that are helping fuel a lot of the investments we make it right now," Hammoud said.
Traffic calming measures like light-up stop signs and speed bumps are going up all over the city.
A full copy of the letter sent to driving schools is below:
"We need their cooperation. We need their support. We need a partnership. We want to ensure that the individuals they're licensing and permitting to be driving on our roads are actually qualified and fit to be driving on our roads," Hammoud said.
The letter goes on to say that the city has received reports that some driving schools have attempted to circumvent these regulations.
And maybe certifying students who have not effectively completed the required coursework.
"Ensuring that drivers' schools are doing their part, that the instructors are doing their part, and that they're teaching the latest and greatest of curriculum, that they're not letting anybody slide by, is extremely important, because when you have a responsibility of ensuring and licensing individuals and beyond on the road for their own safety, but also the safety on that road," Hammoud said.
Leaders say it's going to take everyone, including parents, to help solve this ongoing crisis.
"We have to have this open and honest dialog about how we get these young drivers to calm down on those roads," Hammoud said.