May 21, 2008

Buckle That Safety Belt!

If you’re driving through Texas in the next couple of weeks, you’ll have even more impetus to buckle your safety belt -- and to make certain your passengers do, too. The Texas Department of Transportation has kicked off its seventh annual statewide “Click It or Ticket” campaign with a stern reminder to Texas motorists: If you haven’t gotten into the habit of buckling up, it can cost you a fine of up to $200.

Thousands of state troopers, police officers and sheriff’s deputies will be on Texas streets and highways between now and June 1, including the Memorial Day holiday weekend, issuing citations to drivers who aren’t buckled up and whose children aren’t properly restrained. This year, law enforcement will also pay extra attention to front seat passengers who are not wearing safety belts.

While more than 92 percent of Texas drivers buckle up, passengers are lagging behind when it comes to using safety belts. According to the Texas Transportation Institute, only 87 percent of passengers in Texas use a safety belt, and that number dips to 79 percent when evaluating pickup truck passengers.

“Since pickups are twice as likely as passenger vehicles to roll over in a fatal crash, we worry about the safety of people who don’t take the simple precaution of buckling up when they’re in a truck,” said Carlos Lopez, the Texas Department of Transportation’s traffic operations director. “Wearing a safety belt reduces the risks of dying in a pickup rollover crash by as much as 80 percent.”

Safety advocates report that drivers and passengers who buckle up have a 50 percent better chance of surviving serious traffic collisions and avoiding serious injuries. Since the Click It or Ticket campaign was first launched in Texas in 2002, there have been an estimated 1,600 fewer traffic fatalities in Texas and 37,000 fewer injuries as a result of increased safety belt use. Makes you wonder why others states don’t do the same.