Dover –  From May 12^th to 26th, officers from 36 State, County, and municipal law enforcement agencies issued a total of 1,035 citations to unbuckled motorists during the annual Click It or Ticket campaign.  The enforcement portion of the campaign involved traffic safety checkpoints and saturation patrols both day and night.

Officers working the 2 week Click It or Ticket campaign also issued 43 child restraint citations, 489 speeding citations, made 9 DUI arrests, issued 334 cell phone citations, apprehended 24 wanted persons, made 21 drug arrests, and arrested 2 others for felony violations.

Delaware’s current statewide seat belt usage rate is 92%.  OHS officials have begun their evaluation to determine if there has been any increase in the state’s belt usage rate in the last year by conducting a series of observational seat belt surveys at locations throughout Delaware.  OHS officials will be surveying motorists on roads throughout the state and recording whether drivers and passengers are wearing seat belts.  Motorists on all types of roadways from interstates to two-lane roads will be observed.  Survey results should be available by early fall.

Since January 1^st, 39% of all drivers and passengers killed in vehicle crashes in the First State were not wearing seat belts and as many as half of them may have survived the crash had they been buckled up.  Your chances of being partial or fully ejected from a vehicle increases significantly when not wearing a seat belt. The safest place in a crash is in the vehicle.  Click It or Ticket is a nationwide seat belt enforcement and awareness campaign aimed at saving lives by increasing the number of people who consistently buckle up.

Delaware’s campaign included an awareness message featuring a Delaware State Trooper “I write tickets to save lives.” The messages were aired statewide on radio, internet, and print and billboards.  OHS continued their partnerships with Racing Limos of Dover to wrap the hood of a limo with the Click It or Ticket message. OHS also sent seat belt kits to high schools that gave fun ideas and activities for the schools to help teach students about the importance of bucking up such as setting up a faux checkpoint as students leave the school parking lot.  OHS also partnered with Chick-Fil-A in Camden for a seat belt event featuring the Chick-Fil-A cow and OHS own Bucklebear.   OHS also promoted seat belt safety at Dover International Speedway May 30-June 1st with the NASCAR Nationwide Series Buckle Up 200 presented by Click It or Ticket that was also accompanied by a Buckle Up display in the Monster Mile FanZone with seat belt activities for fans.

OHS has also established new partnerships this year with several little league organizations throughout the state. Throughout the summer OHS will bring the seat belt message to parents and kids during the games with activities including a fast pitch game, mascot appearances by Wilmington Blue Rocks “Rocky”, the Shorebirds mascot “Sherman”, and OHS very own Bucklebear.  Each mascot will be handing out custom Buckle Up baseball cards to kids to teach them about seat belt safety.

The next wave of seat belt enforcement and education in hopes of getting more drivers and passengers buckled up will run June 6th to 19th followed by another wave July 18^th –August 2nd.

Seat belts save lives. Get the facts:

• Wearing a seat belt decreases your risk of being seriously injured or killed in a crash by approximately 50%.
• Strong seat belt laws protect families.  When parents are buckled up, 90% of the time their children are too.
• The safest place for children under 12 to be buckled up is the back seat.
• Hospital data shows that unbelted occupants in crashes are 3 times more likely to require a hospital stay. On average, hospital costs for an unbelted crash victim are 55% higher than those for a belted crash victim.

For more information on Click It or Ticket enforcement results and a look at updated campaign materials, please visit www.BuckleUpDE.org, like us on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/ArriveAliveDE or follow us on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/DEHighwaySafe .

Delaware police officers are writing tickets to save lives.

Dover –  The Click It or Ticket campaign will be in full effect with statewide overtime seat belt enforcement starting Monday, May 12th through 26th.  Enforcement includes seat belt checkpoints in Dover and Wilmington and 446 saturation patrols to be conducted day & night by 35 state, local, and municipal police agencies statewide. Much of the enforcement will occur in the afternoons and evenings when the majority of unrestrained injuries and fatal crashes occur.

Delaware’s seat belt use rate is 92% compared to the national use rate of 86%.  At this time last year 50% of the 14 fatal vehicle occupants in Delaware were not wearing seat belts compared to currently 42% of 31 fatal vehicle occupants.

Delaware law requires drivers and all passengers, including those in the back seat, to wear a seat belt.  An officer can pull over a driver if he sees any person in the vehicle not wearing a seat belt, even if there is no other violation.  Officers will be issuing citations for seat belt violations as part of a zero tolerance policy.  The ticket, which goes to the driver no matter who is unbuckled in the vehicle, totals $83.50.

Participating agencies include Bethany Beach, Blades, Bridgeville, Camden, Capitol, Cheswold, Clayton, DE River & Bay Authority, Dewey Beach, Dover, Elsmere, Felton, Fenwick Island, Georgetown, Greenwood, Harrington, Laurel, Lewes, Middletown, Milford, Millsboro, Milton, New Castle City, New Castle County, Newark, Newport, Ocean View, Rehoboth Beach, Selbyville, Seaford, Smyrna, University of Delaware, Wilmington, and Wyoming police agencies along with and Delaware State Police.

Delaware law enforcement will also be participating in a one day seat belt border to border enforcement blitz on May 19^th.  The Border to Border initiative will be kicked off at 10:30 a.m with a joint press event at the Delaware Memorial Bridge Veterans Memorial Park with law enforcement from Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey, and Delaware.  Law enforcement agencies along the east coast are teaming up to provide increased seat belt enforcement at border sites, sending a ‘zero tolerance’ message to the public: Driving or riding unbuckled will result in a ticket, no matter what State.

“As we kick-off  the busy summer driving season it’s important that everyone buckles up every time they go out, both day and night – no excuses,” said Jana Simpler, Director for the Office of Highway Safety. “Delaware law enforcement officers are prepared to ticket anyone who is not wearing their seat belt – Click It or Ticket.”

Click It or Ticket enforcement is being accompanied by paid media including radio, tv, billboards, gas pump toppers, digital & Pandora advertising. OHS will also promote seat belt safety through community outreach and public awareness activities including the Buckle Up Stencil project, messaging at the Wilmington Grand Prix, a seat belt education event with Chick-Fil-A in Camden, pizza box stickers, little league sponsorships, and race weekend activities at Dover International Speedway in the Monster Mile FanZone.

OHS has also established new partnerships this year with Dover International Speedway and several little league organizations. OHS is partnering with several little league organizations throughout the summer to bring the seat belt message to parents and kids during the games with activities including a fast pitch game, mascot appearances by Wilmington Blue Rocks “Rocky”, the Shorebirds mascot “Sherman”, and OHS very own Bucklebear.  Each mascot will be handing out custom Buckle Up baseball cards to kids to teach them about seat belt safety.  OHS will also be sponsoring the May 31st NASCAR Nationwide Series race- Buckle Up 200 presented by Click It or Ticket.

High School seat belt checks will be conducted at several high schools by the student resource officers along with student groups.  They are handing out Smarties candy and dum-dum lollipops along with good and bad ‘tickets’ to occupants in the car depending on who is buckled up or not.

Seat belts save lives. Get the facts:

• Wearing a seat belt decreases your risk of being seriously injured or killed in a crash by approximately 50%.
• Strong seat belt laws protect families.  When parents are buckled up, 90% of the time their children are too.
• The safest place for children under 12 to be buckled up is the back seat.
• Hospital data shows that unbelted occupants in crashes are 3 times more likely to require a hospital stay. On average, hospital costs for an unbelted crash victim are 55% higher than those for a belted crash victim.

For more information on Click It or Ticket campaign and enforcement results please visit www.BuckleUpDE.org, Like us on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/ArriveAliveDE or follow us on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/DEHighwaySafe .

Dover –   Do you buckle up every time you get in a vehicle?  92% of Delawareans do, every trip every time.  The Delaware Office of Highway Safety (OHS) and law enforcement officials are reminding the other 8% to buckle up.  OHS will coordinate overtime seat belt enforcement with our law enforcement partners from March 8th to 16th.  Participating law enforcement agencies include Milford PD, New Castle County PD, Newark PD, Wilmington PD, Wyoming PD, and Delaware State Police.

OHS will be combining enforcement with paid media, education & outreach that will get the message to buckle up to the individuals in need of hearing the message.  Posters, informational flyers, and newsletters have been distributed to traffic safety partners, schools, and businesses that highlight the importance of seat belt use.  In addition, OHS is sponsoring the DIAA Boys Basketball tournament on March 6 and 8 at the UD Bob Carpenter Sports building and will have a Buckle Up Photo Booth, seat belt informational table, seat belt public service announcements, and halftime shooting contest to win NASCAR tickets to Dover International Speedway.  The shooting contest contestants will be chosen from those who visit the seat belt informational table and participants of the Buckle Up Photo Booth.

Paid media will accompany the enforcement with ads on tv, online, and Pandora.  In the new ads, individuals give their reasons why they wear a seat belt: “I do it for protection,” “I do it because, I like the way it makes me feel,” “I do it because my girlfriend prefers it”, yet 8% of Delawareans still don’t buckle up.

Delaware’s seat belt law requires all vehicle occupants, even back seat passengers, to be “properly” buckled up.  “Properly” means that both lap and shoulder belts must be worn.  In particular, the shoulder belt must be worn across the chest.  Anyone who puts the shoulder belt under their arm, or behind their back is in violation of state law and is putting themselves at greater risk for being seriously injured in a crash.

The law allows officers to pull over a driver if he/she sees any person in the vehicle not wearing a safety belt.  Officers will issue citations for seat belt violations as part of a zero-tolerance policy.  The ticket, which goes to the driver no matter who is unbuckled in the vehicle, is a $25.00 fine plus court administrative fees.

In addition, Delaware’s child restraint law says that the driver is responsible for making sure all children in the vehicle are properly buckled up.  All children under the age of 8 years or 65lbs must be in the appropriate child restraint seat (an infant, toddler or booster seat).  Children who are 8 or at least 65lbs in weight, whichever comes first, must be restrained in a seat belt.  Children under the age of 12 must ride in the back seat when front seat passenger air bags are present.  Child restraint violations are also $25.00 plus court administrative fees.

More waves of seat belt enforcement will take place in May, June, and July.    Delaware’s current seat belt use rate of 92% exceeds the latest 2012 national seat belt use rate of 86%.

For more information on Delaware’s seat belt law or enforcement campaigns, please visit the Office of Highway Safety’s website at www.ohs.delaware.gov, Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ArriveAliveDE, or Follow us on Twitter @DEHighwaySafe.  For information on the latest national seat belt use rate by states (2012) visit http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811809.pdf.

OHS and Delaware Police Officers continue seat belt enforcement

 Dover –  Did you know that not everyone buckles up when they get into a vehicle? Of the twenty-nine (29) vehicle occupants killed this year in Delaware, 53% were not wearing a seat belt.  That is one of many reasons the Office of Highway Safety along with officers from participating State, County and municipal law enforcement agencies are continuing to enforce Delaware’s seat belt law.  Dedicated overtime patrols start July 21^st and run through August 8th.

This high visibility enforcement and public awareness campaign is aimed at saving lives by encouraging more people to wear their seat belts.  Enforcement will take place daily with much of the enforcement occurring in the afternoons and evenings when the majority of unrestrained injury and fatal crashes happen.

Delaware law requires the driver and all passengers, including those in the back seat, to wear a seat belt.  An officer can stop a driver if any person in the vehicle is not wearing a seat belt.  Officers will be operating on a zero tolerance basis during the campaign.  The ticket, which goes to the driver no matter who is unbuckled in the vehicle, totals $83.50.

Enforcement is being accompanied by a statewide public awareness effort in the form of radio, T.V., and internet advertising.

For more information on OHS campaigns and enforcement results, please visit www.ohs.delaware.gov/seatbelts,  follow us on Twitter @DEHighwaySafe or like us on Facebook.com/ArriveAliveDE.

Dover – Over the past two weeks, officers from approximately 30 State, County, and municipal law enforcement agencies issued a total of 1,010 citations to unbuckled motorists during the 12^th annual Click It or Ticket campaign.  The enforcement portion of the campaign ran from May 13th through 27^th and involved traffic safety checkpoints and saturation patrols both day and night along with Border to Border enforcement collaboration of police agencies.

For the sixth year in a row officers participating in Click It or Ticket issued fewer seat belt citations than the year before since 2008 when officers issued a total of 2,347 citations in the 2 week period.  Office of Highway Safety (OHS) officials are hoping this tread means more motorists are buckling up but OHS knows from the seat belt use rate that there is still more work to be done to ensure everyone is buckling up every trip, every time.

Delaware’s current statewide seat belt usage rate is 88% which a decrease from it’s all time high of 91% in 2008 & 2010.  OHS officials are calling for everyone to take responsibility for friends and family members in their vehicles and ensure everyone is buckle up before the car is in motion.

“As the driver of a vehicle, you are responsible for the safety of your occupants and that includes ensuring everyone is buckle up,” said Jana Simpler, Director of the Office of Highway Safety.  “It’s a known fact that seat belts save lives and we are reminding people to actively take part in this life saving behavior of buckling up each and every trip.”

OHS will begin their evaluation to determine if there has been any increase in the state’s belt usage rate in the last year by conducting a series of observational seat belt surveys at locations throughout Delaware.  OHS officials will be surveying motorists on roads throughout the state and recording whether drivers and passengers are wearing seat belts.  Motorists on all types of roadways from interstates to two-lane roads will be observed.  Survey results should be available by early July.

Even if seat belt use does increase, OHS officials remained concerned about the lack of seat belt use in fatal crashes.  Since January 1^st, 50% of all drivers and passengers killed in vehicle crashes in the First State were not wearing seat belts compared to 45% in 2012.  Looking at unbelted use in fatal crashes gives some indicator of overall use by occupants wearing seat belts.

“There is no doubt that the utilization of seatbelts and ensuring that all occupants of a vehicle are properly restrained, saves lives,” said Sergeant Paul G. Shavack, Director of Public Information for the Delaware State Police, “We hope that the Click It or Ticket campaign brings exposure to the use of seatbelts and reminds everyone that there is NEVER a good excuse to ride in a vehicle without buckling up.”

During the Click It or Ticket enforcement period, officers statewide also arrested 5 people for DUI, issued 285 cell phone citations, recovered 1 stolen vehicle, made 22 drug arrests, seized 2 weapons, and made 10 felony arrests. Additionally, officers issued 53 citations to drivers for child restraint violations, issued 297 speeding citations, and issued 878 citations for a variety of other traffic violations.

Click It or Ticket is a nationwide seat belt enforcement and awareness campaign aimed at saving lives by increasing the number of people who consistently buckle up.

Delaware’s campaign included awareness messages aired statewide on TV, billboards, radio, online streaming video ads, Pandora radio, DMV TVs, and a new website www.BuckleUpDE.org.  OHS partnered with Milford High School Student Resource Officers (SRO) Pfc. Joey Melvin to set up a seat belt event during lunch time.  Students could test their strength at the seat belt high striker game that explained the force of an unbelted crash and also see first-hand how a person can be ejected or injured in an unbelted crash demonstration conducted by MCpl. Joseph Lane with the DSP Seat Belt Demonstration Unit.  OHS continued their partnerships with Racing Limos of Dover to wrap the hood of a limo with the Click It or Ticket message.  Racing Limos donated two limo gift certificates and Dover International Speedway donated 100 NASCAR Nationwide Series tickets to Milford HS for their seat belt event.

OHS also worked with SRO’s at Newark and Milford High Schools to stencil their parking lots with the Buckle Up message and SRO’s at Caesar Rodney, Seaford, and Indian River to conduct seat belt checks after school.  OHS also promoted seat belt safety at Dover International Speedway May 31-June 2nd with NASCAR driver J.J. Yeley and Tommy Baldwin Racing.  Yeley wore the Click It or Ticket driver suit for an interview on Trackside on SPEED and promoted seat belt use all weekend including an autograph session at the OHS booth.  Tommy Baldwin Racing wrapped the No. 36 Chevy in full Click It or Ticket messaging for Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Dover.  OHS also set up a booth in the Monster Mile FanZone where fans could try the seat belt high striker game and watch the DSP Seat Belt Demonstration Unit with the Roll Over Convincer.  OHS gave out Buckle Up t-shirts to participants of the seat belt activities along with Click It or Ticket lanyards.

The next wave of seat belt enforcement will run July 21st- August 4^th.

Get the facts:

• Did you know that 45% of all occupant fatalities in Delaware last year were individuals not wearing a seat belt and that fewer than 1/3 of Delaware’s unrestrained fatals occur during the daytime.
• Wearing a seat belt decreases your risk of being seriously injured or killed in a crash by approximately 50%.
• Hospital data shows that unbelted occupants in crashes are 3 times more likely to require a hospital stay. On average, hospital costs for an unbelted crash victim are 55% higher than those for a belted crash victim.
• Strong seat belt laws protect families.  When parents are buckled up, 90% of the time their children are too.

For more information on Click It or Ticket enforcement results and a look at updated campaign materials, please visit www.ohs.delaware.gov, www.buckleupde.org, like us on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/ArriveAliveDE or follow us on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/DEHighwaySafe .