Click It or Ticket campaign goes beyond statistics, saves lives

From May 23 through this past weekend, police and traffic safety officers across the U.S. joined together for our annual Click It or Ticket seat belt enforcement campaign.  This program has been the cornerstone of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's program to get Americans to buckle up.  And with 85 percent of Americans fastening their seat belts when they get into a vehicle, we think it's working.

Until May 25th, Kevin Kelly of Wetumpka, Alabama, was one of the 15 percent who didn't buckle up.  That morning, a Click it or Ticket public service announcement from the Alabama Department of Public Safety changed his mind--and saved his life.

Later that day, the red pickup truck Kevin was driving was involved in a head-on collision with another pickup.  Alabama State Trooper Joe Champion arrived on the scene, saw the wreckage of the violent crash and prepared for the worst.

Amazingly, he found Kevin essentially uninjured.  How?  His seat belt prevented serious harm.

Before leaving his house, Kevin had seen the Click It or Ticket ad, and when he climbed behind the wheel of his pickup, the message was still running through his mind.

"I don't know why I listened to it," he says, "but I did, and I'm pretty sure it saved my life."

This is precisely why we do what we do here at DOT.  This is why NHTSA works so hard persuading Americans to buckle up.  This is why the Alabama Department of Public Safety and state DOTs across the country run ads promoting seat belt use.  This is why thousands of state troopers in Alabama and in your state make that extra effort during the annual Click It or Ticket enforcement mobilization.

As Sgt. Steve Jarrett of the Alabama Department of Public Safety said, "We're all happy to have an example we can point to and say, for certain, that this campaign is making a difference."

I said earlier that the 85 percent of Americans wearing their seat belts demonstrates that our efforts are working.  But, with 15 percent still riding unbuckled, we know we can do better.  And if it means changing people's minds one by one, that's what we'll do.

Because Kevin Kelly of Wetumpka, Alabama, has a simple message for all of us: Seat belts save lives.

Comments

[Carl Burbank]

I use to go out with a nurse, she said you can tell who was wearing a seatbelt and who was not, by how bad their injuries where!!

[bicycle shorts]

When cycling you may come across some uphill climbs that may seem impossible, but stick with it, as you reach the top you will be able to see a beautiful view.

[Kris]

Four of my friends were in the car and got hit by a drunk driver. I'm so glad I did not go with them that night. Three out of the four did not have their seatbelt's on including the driver. The driver was killed instantly. The passenger had his seatbelt on and had no injuries. The two in the backseat did not have their seatbelt on and one has permanent brain damage and the other died in the hospital.

Wearing your seatbelt is incredibly important so I'm glad to hear that click it or ticket is having some impact on this important issue.

[Mike]

It's really hard to believe that some folks are still running the highways without seat belts fastened. I'm 52, I remember when seatbelts were just an option. But now, I wouldn't venture out in the car without a seatbelt securely anchoring me.