As summer kicks off and families hit the road for vacations, State and Local law enforcement are reminding motorists to Click It or Ticket. Aimed at enforcing seat belt use to help keep families safe, the national seat belt campaign will take place May 20 through June 2, concurrent with one of the busiest travel and holiday weekends of the year.
“As the Memorial Day weekend approaches and the summer vacation season ramps up, we want to keep our community members safe, and make sure people are doing the one thing that can save them in a crash: buckling up,” said Connecticut Department of Transportation Commissioner Joseph Giulietti. “Seat belts save lives, and everyone – front seat and back, child and adult – needs to remember to buckle up, every trip, every time.”
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there were 10,076 unbuckled passenger vehicle occupants killed in crashes in the United States in 2017. Almost 57 percent of young adults (18 to 34) killed in crashes were completely unrestrained, and 59 percent of pickup truck occupants who were killed were not buckled up.
In Connecticut, statewide seat belt use increased to 92.1% in 2018, up from 90.3% in 2017.
“We are encouraged by the compliance rate increase, which shows us that heightened enforcement efforts do, in fact, work,” added Giulietti. “Law enforcement officials will be out on Connecticut’s roads and will be issuing citations to those who are unbuckled.”
Connecticut law requires all drivers and passengers in the front seat, regardless of the occupant’s age, as well as all children under 16 in all positions to wear seatbelts. Fines start at a minimum of $92 for first offense.
For more information on the Click It or Ticket mobilization, please visit www.nhtsa.gov/ciot
