GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — If you make an emergency call, you might receive text message updates starting Wednesday.
Michigan State Police is starting a pilot program where if you make an emergency call to a dispatch center, you could get text message updates. The agency would be the first state-level police agency in the country to test out this technology.
“Utilizing technology to provide our customers with real-time updates and seek their feedback on our service delivers on our commitment to modern policing,” Col. Joe Gasper, director of MSP, said in a release. “We strive to provide the best customer service experience to each person we interact with and by using automatic text message notifications and satisfaction surveys, we’ll be able to not only provide better customer service, but also make adjustments based on direct customer feedback.”
The program will be evaluated after 90 days and involves MSP’s posts in Lansing and Marshall, as well as Eaton, Branch, Calhoun and St. Joseph counties.
One example of how the service works is if you call and request a police response, you will receive a text message notifying you if that trooper is on their way, if they are delayed or any other updates. MSP said in a release that not all calls will receive a text message, especially not calls “including sensitive safety matters.”
A text message survey will also be sent out once everything is taken care of. The feedback survey is for MSP to improve customer service and it will be shared with employees.
Don’t use the feedback survey as a way to report an emergency or crime or to make a formal complaint, MSP said.
This is not the first department in Michigan to try out this kind of program. The Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office, the city of Wyoming and the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety have started similar programs this year.
MSP said after the pilot period, it will decide whether to purchase and use this technology throughout the state.