Starkville Police Department and the Oktibbeha County Sheriff’s Office will have extra officers out as the departments begin an annual seat belt enforcement campaign.
Both departments are participating in “Click It or Ticket,” which is a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration-led campaign focused on enforcing seat belt use across the United States.
This year’s campaign begins Monday and runs through June 3, which aligns with the Memorial Day weekend and the beginning of the summer travel period.
Both departments will have more officers out to watch for seat belt violations through grant funding received to pay for office overtime.
“This is something we look to enforce throughout the year, but during this time we do put an extra emphasis on it just to make sure people are safe,” said Starkville Police Chief Frank Nichols. “We have our normal shifts out, plus extra officers who come in for overtime to work seat belts.”
SPD receives $15,000 in grant funding each year for a number of enforcement programs, including Click It or Ticket.
According to the NHTSA, 48 percent of passenger vehicle occupants killed in crashes in 2016 were not wearing seat belts. That percentage grew to 56 at night, from the hours of 6 p.m. to 5:59 a.m.
Oktibbeha County Sheriff Steve Gladney said his department, like Starkville, will use the grant to have extra officers out to watch for seat belt violations. OSCO received $12,500 through the grant for officer overtime, according to Chief Deputy Chadd Garnett.
“It’s just about saving lives, and it’s a busy time of year, with summer coming on and people vacationing, camps going on at MSU and other activities,” Gladney said. “We’re trying to make it as safe as we can, and encouraging people to buckle up every time they get in the car.”
According to the NHTSA, seat belt use rose to a record high of 90 percent in 2016, up from 83 percent a decade prior, through a combination of awareness campaigns and the enforcement of seat belt laws.
The agency further reported that seatbelts saved 13,941 lives in 2015. However, 2,804 fatalities occurred that year due to not wearing seat belts, according to the NHTSA.
Nichols said, especially as the summer holiday season begins, it’s vitally important to wear seat belts.
“We want to remind people that seat belts are there to save their lives,” he said. “We encourage everyone to wear them, especially during the holidays, when you have more people out celebrating, and therefore may be consuming alcoholic beverages.”
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