U.S. Transportation Secretary LaHood Kicks Off Annual 'Click It or Ticket' Campaign to Increase Seat Belt Use |
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Topics: Ray LaHood
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NHTSA
May 21, 2012
NHTSA 12-12
Monday, May 21, 2012
Contact: Karen Aldana, 202-366-9550
WASHINGTON – U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood joined law enforcement officers and national safety advocates today to launch the Department of Transportation's (DOT) 2012 "Click It or Ticket" seat belt enforcement mobilization effort.
This year's campaign coincides with new advertisements by DOT's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that highlight unsafe attempts by drivers to fake seat belt use. NHTSA data show nationwide more than three million seat belt citations have been issued during the annual crackdowns over the past five years.
"Thanks to decades of hard work alongside our safety partners, drivers are buckling up when they get behind the wheel" said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. "But we can't stop our safety efforts. During last year's mobilization, law enforcement issued almost 500,000 tickets to drivers who failed to wear a seat belt. At DOT, we will continue this important work to keep everyone safe on our roadways."
Through the Memorial Day holiday, approximately 10,000 law enforcement officers from coast-to-coast will be participating in the "Click It or Ticket" crackdown. The accompanying advertisements, airing nationally May 14-28, offer a humorous take on techniques attempted by drivers trying to fake seat belt use, such as the Right Cross Fake, the Front Side Shoulder Sham, the Smooth Glide, the Pledge of Allegiance and the 44-oz. The advertisements target male passenger vehicle occupants ages 18 to 34 years old, a group that comprised 66 percent of unrestrained occupants killed in traffic crashes in 2010 — the highest proportion among all occupants. Click here to view the ads.
"If you try a seat belt fake-out, chances are you are going to get caught. Law enforcement officers are trained to spot unbelted drivers at any time of they day -- and they do not issue fake tickets," said NHTSA Administrator David Strickland. "Seat belts save tens of thousands of lives every year and there is simply no good excuse for not buckling up."
NHTSA studies show seat belt use among drivers at 84 percent for 2011. Additional data show that seat belts have saved thousands of lives each year nationwide. Yet in 2010 alone, 241 passenger vehicle occupants were killed in traffic crashes during the Memorial Day holiday period. Nearly two-thirds of these fatalities occurred at night between the hours of 6:00 PM and 5:59AM — when the risk of being in a crash triples — and 66 percent were not belted.
Click here to see the new NHTSA new advertisements.
Click here to view the latest 2010 fatality statistics.
Click here to view the latest 2010 report on restraint use.