The Columbia Police Department Step Up Seat Belt Enforcement On The "Click It or Ticket" Statewide Campaign

(COLUMBIA, MO) -

THE COLUMBIA POLICE DEPARTMENT STEP UP SEAT BELT ENFORCEMENT ON THE "CLICK IT OR TICKET" STATEWIDE CAMPAIGN

The Columbia Police Department will be joining efforts with statewide law enforcement May 19 - June 1, 2014 for an aggressive "Click It or Ticket" mobilization to crack down on Missouri's seat belt violations.

Six out of 10 people killed in Missouri traffic crashes are unbuckled. And even with all the advancements in automobile safety and education on the importance of seat belt use, Missouri's seat belt use has remained relatively unchanged in the last six years and consistently below the national average.

Missouri has an 80 percent seat belt use, which is well below the national average of 86 percent. Teens and pick-up drivers are among those least likely to buckle up at 67 and 63 percent.

Every day someone dies in a crash in Missouri because they weren't buckled up. Columbia Police Officers will be out in force to remind motorist seat belts can and do save lives. The overtime will be paid for by a grant funded by the Missouri Department Traffic & Highway Safety Division.  Seat belt use is the single most effective way to protect people and reduce fatalities in motor vehicle crashes.

Buckle UP and Arrive Alive. For information on Missouri Seatbelt usage, visit www.saveMOlives.com