INDIANA, (WOWO) – Click It or Ticket patrols begin later this month as summer travel season kicks off.
Fort Wayne, New Haven, Allen County and Woodburn Police Departments will join law-enforcement agencies across Indiana and the nation to increase enforcement of seat-belt laws.
High-visibility patrols will be watching for unrestrained front and back seat passengers, including both children and adults.
This year marks 30 years since Indiana’s seat-belt law began, and the state has participating in Click It or Ticket for more than 20 years.
Last year, more than 240 law-enforcement agencies performed 8,728 hours of traffic patrols and issued more than 30,000 citations and warnings, including 13,700 seat-belt and child-restraint citations.
Overtime police patrols are paid with National Highway Traffic Safety Administration funds administered by the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute (ICJI).
The Fort Wayne Police Departments wants to warn drivers of seat-belt tips that can save you or a loved one from injury or death.
- Secure the lap belt across your hips and pelvis, below your stomach.
- Place the shoulder belt across the middle of your chest and rib cage, away from your neck.
- Never put the shoulder belt behind your back or under your arm.
- If your seat-belt doesn’t fit you, or you have an older car with lap belts only, ask your dealer or vehicle manufacturer about seat-belt adjusters, extenders or retrofits.
“Click It or Ticket means zero-tolerance for unrestrained drivers and passengers,” said Lt. Tony Maze of the Fort Wayne Police Department in a press release. “So why are we warning everyone in advance? Because the bottom line is not issuing seat-belt citations, but saving lives. Anyone who responds to a serious crash just wants motorists to buckle up in the first place.”
Drivers should remember that in Indiana, unrestrained children under 16 are the driver’s responsibility. For each child found without a seat-belt, the driver will receive another citation.
