Click It or Ticket Campaign | Gulfport Police Department

2019 Click It or Ticket Kick-Off

Fact Sheet

Change Habits to Save Lives

Be a Part of the Progress

As an integral part of this year’s national Click It or Ticket seat belt campaign, which will take place May 20 through June 2, 2019, The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration will be teaming up with law enforcement nationwide for a Border to Border (B2B) kickoff event. State and local law enforcement agencies across the Nation are stepping up enforcement to crack down on motorists who aren’t wearing their seat belts.
For this year’s Click It or Ticket seat belt mobilization effort, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is asking all States to participate in the B2B, a 1-day national seat belt-awareness event coordinated by participating state highway safety offices and their respective law enforcement liaisons. The B2B program aims to increase law enforcement participation by coordinating highly visible seat belt enforcement and providing seat belt fact sheets for drivers at heavily traveled; highly visible state border checkpoints.
The kick off will include a 4-hour enforcement crackdown from 4–8 p.m. on Monday May 20^th. The focus is on the nighttime hours, during which seat belt use is at its lowest. The operation will include both interstates and local roadways, and NHTSA is asking all States to participate this year.
Enforce Life-Saving Laws

Click It or Ticket isn’t about citations; it’s about saving lives. In 2017, there were 10,076 unbuckled passenger vehicle occupants killed in crashes in the United States. In that same year, 55 percent of passenger vehicle occupants killed at night (6 p.m.–5:59 a.m.) were not wearing their seat belts. Participating law enforcement agencies will be taking a no-excuses approach to seat belt law enforcement, writing citations day and night. To help prevent crash fatalities, we need to step up enforcement and crack down on those who don’t wear their seat belts.
Seat belt use is required by law for a reason: In 2017, seat belts saved an estimated 15,000 lives of occupants 5 and older. From 2012 to 2016, seat belts saved nearly 67,000 lives.
If all passenger vehicle occupants 5 and older involved in fatal crashes had worn their seat belts, an additional 2,456 lives could have been saved in 2016 alone.
Face the Facts

The national seat belt use rate in 2017 was 89.7 percent, which is good—but we can do better. The other 10.3 percent still need to be reminded that seat belts save lives.
Among young adults 18 to 34 killed in crashes in 2017, more than half (57%) were completely unrestrained—one of the highest percentages for all age groups.
Men make up the majority of those killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes. In 2017, 51 percent of men killed in crashes were not buckled up, compared to 39 percent of women.
High-visibility seat belt enforcement is important 24 hours a day, but nighttime is especially deadly for unbuckled occupants. In 2017, 55 percent of passenger vehicle occupants killed at night (6 p.m. – 5:59 a.m.) were not wearing their seat belts.
Bust the Myths

Vehicle type: There seems to be a misconception among those who drive and ride in pickup trucks that their large vehicles will protect them better than other vehicles would in a crash. The numbers say otherwise: 59 percent of pickup truck occupants who were killed in 2017 were not buckled up. That’s compared to 42 percent of passenger car occupants who were not wearing seat belts when they were killed. Regardless of vehicle type, seat belt use is the single most effective way to stay alive in a crash.
Rural versus urban locations: People who live in rural areas might believe that their crash exposure is lower, but in 2017, there were 12,786 passenger vehicle fatalities in rural locations, compared to 10,316 fatalities in urban locations. Out of those fatalities, 49 percent of those killed in the rural locations were not wearing their seat belts, compared to 44 percent in urban locations.

Crime Statistics