Westland Police Offer Traffic Safety Event for Teen Drivers

On Saturday, June 11, the Westland Police Department hosted an event for teen drivers called "Understanding Basics of Traffic Safety." The event gave newly licensed teen drivers the opportunity to experience a traffic stop by police officers in a safe environment in the department's parking lot. Teen drivers, with a parent or guardian in the vehicle, experienced a simulated traffic stop, learning in the process what to do and what not to do when flashing police car lights appear in the rear view mirror.

"The idea behind today's event is to allow high school-age drivers to be in a very realistic scenario in regards to a traffic stop," said Lt. Robert Wilkie of the Westland Police Department. "They'll be driving their own vehicle, you'll have the patrol car pull up behind, it'll have its lights on as it will chirp its sirens, and the purpose of that in this simulated event is to actually raise stress levels just a little bit. We want to get the stress level a little bit high so that we can show people that when we conduct a traffic shop that it's not a stressful event if it's handled civilly. What we're really trying to do is lower the anxiety and stress level of these new drivers in a traffic stop scenario. If it's your first time getting pulled over, people sometimes react differently and maybe not positively, so that's what we're trying to avoid."

Westland City Councilman Mike Londeau was on hand to support the police department and the event, and had plans to bring his niece to the simulation. "I'm always happy to support our hardworking men and women in the Westland Police Department, they're always doing innovative things to try to create public awareness," he said. "It's important; some people have never been pulled over before and they don't know what to do, they don't know how to act. You get nervous when you get pulled over so this will hopefully ease some of their nerves and they'll know the proper protocol if they ever are pulled over."

Teen drivers were also given instruction about what to do in the event of a traffic crash or a road rage incident. The event was promoted on social media and Wilkie said he hopes the event becomes an annual one and one that can even help change the perspective some drivers have of the police. "Especially people who are apprehensive, especially people who have doubts about police or traffic stops, that's exactly who we would like to have out here because we would like to show them that some of the more highly publicized events are not commonplace. Thousands of traffic stops happen within the city of Westland every year and they go off uneventful and for the most part, in a friendly manner as long as both parties act civil."