Detroit is most dangerous city for driving; Michigan hands-free law working, studies find

Two recent driving studies — one with bad news, the other with good — offers drivers in Detroit a warning, and motorists across the state some hope.

The bad news: A San Diego, California-based company — SellMax, that buys used cars — ranked Detroit the most dangerous city for drivers based on its analysis of data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

As for the good news: Cambridge Mobile Telematics, based in Massachusetts, concluded in an analysis of Michigan’s new hands-free law, that it appears to be working so far, preventing hundreds of crashes and millions of dollars in property damage.

More on that in a moment.

"Since summer is one of the most popular times of the year for road trips, it's important for drivers to understand all the risks," the SellMax report said. "From distracted drivers and treacherous road conditions to drunk drivers, anytime you get behind the wheel of a car, there's a very real possibility of a fatal car accident occurring."

The study looked at the total number of driving-related fatalities, fatalities resulting from driving under the influence, and fatalities caused by speeding. It was created by combining the rankings from the three categories for a final score to determine the overall rank.

It found Detroit was:

• The third worst in percentage of driving fatalities per city population, 0.15%.

• The fourth for the proportion of driving under the influence fatalities, 0.017%.

• And third for proportion of driving fatalities from speeding, with a 0.034%.

Overall, the study concluded Detroit was the most dangerous city, based on its statistical formula, followed by Dallas, and Tucson, Arizona. In contrast, the three safest cities, it determined, were New York, Boston and Jersey City, New Jersey.

More on the good news. The early look at results of Michigan’s distracted driving law by the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based telematics firm found drivers spent less time handling their phones after the law took effect June 30.

More: Michigan's new distracted driving law is now in effect. Here's what to know.

The telematics firm measured distracted driving through phone use while a car was in motion.

Michigan drivers in June spent an average of 1 minute and 47 seconds per hour on the road handling their phones, but after the law, phone distractions fell to an average of 1 minute and 35 seconds per hour, a 11.2% drop.

Every 10% decrease in distracted driving reduces the crash rate by 1.4%, according to an analysis by the telematics firm. That translates into preventing two fatalities, 650 crashes and $15.5 million in economic damages.

Michigan lawmakers and advocates for the distracted driver bills, the Free Press reported, said a new law would save lives — in 2021, there were 21 fatal vehicle crashes in Michigan where cellphone use was a factor, according to the state Office of Highway Safety Planning.

The study also found the reduction in distracted driving in Michigan followed a similar pattern to other states that have introduced hands-free laws. Across eight states that enacted handheld bans from 2018 to 2021, phone motion distraction remained 13% lower after three months.

And for many drivers, that is a hopeful sign for Michigan and other states.

"We are extremely encouraged by the initial results of Michigan’s hands-free legislation," Steve Kiefer, chairman of the telematic firm’s road safety board, said, adding that such lifesaving laws are especially beneficial in the summer "when crashes and fatalities typically increase by 15%."

Contact Frank Witsil: 313-222-5022 or [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Driving studies: Detroit most dangerous; Michigan hands-free law works