Naperville continues to hand out tickets for seat belt violations year-round
Naperville Police Department concluded stepped-up enforcement of seat belt laws on May 26, as part of the 2014 national Click It or Ticket mobilization. After a 9-day police mobilization, the seat belt enforcement campaign in Naperville comes to an end with an announcement by Naperville Police Department that 24 seat belt tickets issued during the region’s special safety crackdown, along with 14 DUI arrests, two drug arrests, 26 texting / cell phone citations, 82 speeding citations and 45 citations for miscellaneous violations.
“Memorial Day weekend kicked off summer vacation season, and our priority was to ensure that everyone arrived at their destinations safe and sound,” said Sergeant Al Trotsky “We said we’d be cracking down on those not wearing their seat belts. Some people chose not to listen, and they were ticketed.”
As part of the national Click It or Ticket mobilization, The Naperville Police Department teamed up with law enforcement agencies from across the country to ticket motorists not wearing their seat belts. The high-visibility enforcement campaign was timed to begin with increased travel for the Memorial Day weekend.
According to new data released from the Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), fatalities are up nationwide for the first time in 5 years. In 2012, 10,335 people who were killed in motor vehicle crashes were not wearing their seat belts. NHTSA data also details the fact that more traffic vehicle deaths occur at night. In 2012, 61 percent of passenger vehicle occupants killed during the nighttime hours of 6PM – 5:59AM. were not wearing their seat belts.
“The mobilization may have ended, but the crackdown on those who flaunt the law by not wearing their seat belts will continue year-round,” said Sergeant Al Trotsky. “We’re not issuing tickets for our own enjoyment; we’re doing this to save lives. Too many people are unnecessarily dying on our roads.”
In 2012 seat belts saved an estimated 12,174 lives nationwide. An additional 3,031 lives could have been saved if all unrestrained passenger vehicle occupants five and older involved in fatal crashes had been properly restrained.
For more information on the Click It or Ticket mobilization, please visit www.nhtsa.gov/ciot.
