"Click It Or Ticket" Starts Monday

The Dalton Police Department’s Traffic Enforcement Unit and Patrol Division will step up their efforts to enforce Georgia’s Safety Belt and Child Restraint laws in conjunction with the nation wide “Click It or Ticket” campaign which runs from November 16th thru November 29th.  This nationwide traffic enforcement campaign includesthe upcoming Thanksgiving Holiday, which is traditionally the busiest holiday in terms of travel, making traffic on Georgia's roads much heavier. Nationwide, more than half of all traffic crash victims killed during Thanksgiving travel were not wearing their safety belts.

“Click it or Ticket” is a nationwide enforcement campaign to increase safety belt usage and reduce serious injury or fatal car crashes. Research data shows that nationwide, 72% of passenger vehicle occupants involved in serious car crashes survived when wearing their seat belts correctly.  Seat belts have proven to reduce the risk of fatal injury to front seat passengers by 45%.

The current statewide safety belt usage rate in the state of Georgia is at 89%, the highest in the southeast.  The most recent safety belt usage survey conducted in early November 2009 by the Dalton Police Department showed that Dalton’s safety belt usage stood at 86%, much lower then past years.

The department will be conducting several special operations beginning November 16th and continuing thru November 29th to enforce Georgia’s Safety Belt and Child Restraint laws.  Motorists should take note: any front seat passenger of a passenger vehicle in operation on highways of Georgia must wear a safety belt, any passenger of a vehicle under 18 years of age must wear a safety belt no matter where they are seated in the vehicle, and all children under the age of 6 years must be placed in an approved Child Safety Restraint.  Motorists should also be aware that not only will failure to wear a safety belt correctly with the shoulder belt across the chest lead to getting a ticket, but it will also not give the passenger any protection if the vehicle that they are an occupant is involved in a crash.

The Dalton Police Department wishes everyone a safe and happy Thanksgiving holiday, so we're encouraging everyone to slow down, buckle up, and drive sober!

Comments

[James]

Are pickup trucks still exempt from the seat belt laws? I know as late as Feb. of 2009 they still were. Has this changed since?

[DPD]

As of June 1, 2010, pickup trucks are no longer exempt from Georgia's safety belt laws. Drivers and passengers in all vehicles on Georgia's roadways now must be buckled up.