Warning issued to motorists: Click It or Ticket

Posted by ChaddsFordLive on May 16, 2016

In 2015, 64 people died in 3,440 accidents in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties – fatalities that could have been reduced if the victims had been wearing seat belts, according to PennDOT.

State police will join municipal officers in the Click It or Ticket campaign, which begins on Monday, May 16. — State police will join municipal officers from multiple area departments in the Click It or Ticket campaign, which begins on May 16.

The effort to avoid those outcomes has prompted 87 municipal police departments across southeast Pennsylvania as well as the Pennsylvania State Police to conduct seat belt enforcement activities as part of a statewide Click It or Ticket mobilization. The initiative will run from May 16 through June 5, including the Memorial holiday weekend, according to a PennDOT press release.

Officers from Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties will focus on roadways with a significant history of unbelted crashes, injuries, and deaths by initiating a combination of enforcement and public awareness activities.

Pennsylvania recorded another decrease in seat-belt use in 2015 with an observed rate of 83.6 percent. This is the lowest rate since 2005. The proper use of a seat belt can increase your chances of surviving a crash by up to 60 percent, the release said.

PennDOT’s enforcement, coupled with educational outreach efforts, aims to increase seat-belt use and raise awareness of the state’s primary law, which states that all vehicle occupants under 18 years old must wear a seat belt. Drivers and front-seat passengers over 18 years old who are cited for another traffic violation will receive a second ticket if they’re unbuckled, the release said.

The effort, coordinated through PennDOT’s Buckle Up PA program, supplements major enforcement mobilizations in May and June, as well as the Thanksgiving holiday during which PennDOT distributes $1.1 million statewide in federal enforcement funding from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

For more information on PennDOT’s seat belt efforts visit JustDrivePA.com. Motorists can check conditions on more than 40,000 roadway miles by visiting www.511PA.com. 511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information and access to more than 770 traffic cameras.