Business & Economy

Michigan drivers still texting, despite ban

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By BROOKE KANSIER
Capital News Service
LANSING — Michigan has banned texting while driving since 2010, but many Michigan teens are still typing away behind the wheel — and so are their parents. Although a national study found reduced crash rates among states with a texting while driving ban, Michigan has not seen such a drop since introducing its own version of the ban. The recent study, led by researchers at Texas A&M and published online March 19, found that states enforcing texting bans had a 7 percent drop in hospitalizations from serious accidents from 2003 to 2010, compared to states without bans. The study factored in alternative components as well, such as changes in speeding laws, drunk driving, and teen driving restrictions, with the texting laws having the highest correlation. Michigan, however, has seen numbers move in the opposite direction, with accidents and accident-related injuries slightly increasing under its ban — from about 282,000 accidents in 2010 to about 289,000 in 2013, according to statistics from the  State Police.