Police Crackdown on Those Who Don't Buckle Up

Police are responding to more fatal car crashes where lives could have been saved if the drivers and passengers wore their seat belts. Seat belt usage also tends to drop off at night when there is an increase in fatalities.

Of those who died in nighttime crashes in 2009, nearly two-thirds (62 percent) were not wearing seat belts at the time of the crashes, according to Lt. Brian McCauley.

Next week, Monroe police will join with thousands of other law enforcement officers, highway safety officials and safety advocates across the country in support of the 2011 Click It or Ticket mobilization — a highly visible national enforcement crackdown created to save more lives on our roadways.

The stepped up enforcement will last from May 23 – June 5.

"Monroe motorists can expect to receive tickets, not warnings, if officers find them out on the roads unbuckled — both day and night," McCauley said.

Because nighttime passenger vehicle occupants are among those least likely to buckle up and most likely to die in crashes when unrestrained, nighttime enforcement has become a priority of the Click It or Ticket mobilization.

Teens and young adults who fail to buckle up are also at an increased risk of dying in a crash. Sadly, motor vehicle crashes are one of the leading causes of death for young Americans, exceeding all crime and disease-related causes.

"But the way to protect you and your family is crystal clear," McCauley said. "Seat belts provide the best defense against impaired, distracted and aggressive drivers. In fact, wearing your seat belt is the single most effective crash protection available."

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in 2009 the use of seat belts in passenger vehicles saved an estimated 12,713 lives. An additional 3,688 lives would have been saved if all unrestrained passenger vehicle occupants age 5 and older involved in fatal crashes had worn their seat belts.

However, a seat belt can’t save even one life if it’s not used. And that’s where enforcement comes into play. High-visibility enforcement campaigns such as the annual Click It or Ticket mobilization are widely credited with increasing the national seat belt usage rate from 58 percent in 1994 to an observed rate of 85 percent in 2010.

"Seat belts save lives," McCauley said. "Spread the word to your family and friends to always buckle up – both day and night. Not only could you save them the cost of a ticket, you could even save their lives."

For on the national seat belt mobilization, visit Click It or Ticket headquarters at TrafficSafetyMarketing.gov.