The U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Region 7 which includes Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska, is reminding drivers about the lifesaving benefits of wearing a seatbelt this spring, during the national Click It or Ticket high-visibility enforcement effort. The national seatbelt campaign, which coincides with the Memorial Day holiday, runs from May 24 to June 6, 2021.
Every time you go somewhere in a vehicle, whether you're the driver or a passenger, you should have your seatbelt buckled. Buckling your seatbelt should be a habit -- something you do without exception.
According to NHTSA, in 2019, there were 9,466 unbuckled passenger vehicle occupants killed in crashes in the United States. In that same year, 55% of passenger vehicle occupants killed at night (6 p.m. to 5:59 a.m.) were not wearing their seatbelts. That's why one focus of the Click It or Ticket campaign is nighttime enforcement. Participating law enforcement agencies will be taking a no-excuses approach to seatbelt law enforcement, writing citations day and night.
"If the enforcement effort wakes people up to the dangers of unrestrained driving, we'll consider our mission to be a success," said Susan DeCourcy, NHTSA Region 7 administrator. "Our region alone has lost 4,376 lives between 2015-2019. If you know friends or family members who do not buckle up when they drive, please ask them to consider changing their habits. Help us spread this life-saving message before one more friend or family member is killed as a result of this senseless inaction. Seatbelts save lives, and everyone -- front seat and back, child and adult -- needs to remember to buckle up."
The campaign is targeted at all drivers, but especially the hard-to-reach young adults 18 to 34 killed in crashes in 2019, more than half (57%) were completely unrestrained -- one of the highest percentages for all age groups.
Buckling up is the simplest thing you can do to limit injury or save your life during a crash. Law enforcement sees the results of not wearing a seatbelt all the time -- the loss of life. So often, it could have been prevented. Click It or Ticket combines local on-street enforcement with a national media campaign to convey the message that officers are out enforcing seatbelt laws to protect the community.
Thousands of Americans are alive today thanks to strong state laws, Click it or Ticket efforts, and the year-round Buckle Up America campaigns. Many Americans understand the lifesaving value of the seatbelt. NHTSA has been working with the States on Click It or Ticket since 2003. Since that time, national seatbelt use has increased from 79 percent to 90.7 percent (2019).
For more information on the Click It or Ticket mobilization, please visit www.nhtsa.gov/ciot.