As Memorial Day approaches, and the summer driving season officially begins, a new effort is being made to remind us about the importance of seat belts. Monday police agencies across the country began participating in a "Click It or Ticket" campaign.
Trooper Jason Wilson, from the Illinois State Police post in East Moline, says for the next two weeks more than 1,000 departments will hold enforcement details, and hire back off-duty officers, to enforce the seat belt laws.
So after decades of reminders, why is this necessary ?
"When it comes to crashes, many people say 'well, I'm a good driver.' And all police officers just shake their heads at that because you can't control what's going to happen on the road, you can only be as safe as you can possibly control."
Wilson says currently about 96 per cent of Illinois drivers comply with the seat belt laws but that still isn't enough.
"But that less than 4 % who choose not to wear their seat belt still make up over 40 % of the crashes we handle. That should be a staggering number - that 4 % of the population make up 40 % of the fatalities."
He says Illinois now requires everyone in a vehicle to be restrained - seat belts for older children and adults, and safety seats for young children, appropriate for their age and the vehicle they're riding in.
