Click It or Ticket to start in N.D.

Law enforcement officials throughout the state will conduct increased seat belt enforcement through a Click It or Ticket campaign which begins Nov. 11 and runs through Nov. 19.

About 75 percent of people killed in motor-vehicle crashes are not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash, said Mark Nelson, safety division director for the North Dakota Department of Transportation.

The same appears to be true for this year, officials said. As of Oct. 21, 53 of 85 fatalities were not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash. Rollover crashes are an ongoing problem too. As of Oct. 21, officials have reported 32 single vehicle rollovers with 32 fatalities. Twenty-six of the fatalities were not wearing a seat belt and were either fully or partially ejected from the vehicle.

Seat belts are the single most effective traffic safety device for preventing death and injury, officials said.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, wearing a seat belt can reduce the risk of crash injuries by 50 percent.

“Buckling your seat belt every time you enter a vehicle, regardless of how short or long a distance you are traveling, can — and likely will — save your life. With winter months approaching, leading to more challenging driving conditions, everyone should do everything they can to protect themselves and others within their vehicle,” Nelson said.

For more information on other safe driving initiatives, visit the NDDOT’s website at www.dot.nd.gov.

Tags: seat belts, news, driving, enforcement