If you plan to travel over the Memorial Day holiday weekend, you will likely see more law enforcement officers out on the road.
Troopers with the Indiana State Police Jasper Post are taking part in the national Click It or Ticket campaign and are increasing patrols now through June 6th to educate motorists about the importance of wearing a seatbelt.
Troopers will be writing citations and conducting high-visibility patrols during the day, but especially at night when unrestrained driving is at its peak.
Drivers can also be cited for each unbuckled passenger under the age of 16, and children under eight must be properly restrained in a federally approved child or booster seat.
Throughout the campaign, troopers will be taking a no-excuses approach to seat belt enforcement, which means anyone caught not wearing one will receive a citation.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, seatbelts have saved over 69,000 lives between 2015 and 2019 in the U.S.
Despite knowing the benefits, people still refuse to fasten the seat belt.
Over 800 people were killed on Indiana roads last year. 565 of these occurred in passenger vehicles. Sadly, 364 of those, or 6 out of 10, were not wearing a seat belt.
Out of any age group, male drivers, particularly those between the ages of 15 and 34, were the most likely to be found not wearing a seat belt at the time of a crash.
Individuals who were not wearing seat belts were three times more likely to get injured in a crash when the driver was speeding and seven times more likely when the driver was impaired.
