Published: May 21, 2008 08:28 pm      

Local law agencies promoting ‘Click it or Ticket’

CJ Staff Writer

A campaign to get more people to buckle up is underway.

The nationwide campaign “Click it or Ticket” began Monday and will run through June 1.

The campaign, sponsored by the National Highway Safety Administration, is focused on getting more drivers and passengers to always buckle up day and night, every trip, every time.

“We believe that your aggressive enforcement efforts will help us to build on last year’s successes, which included increasing seat belt usage in Kentucky to 72 percent and reducing traffic fatalities by more than five percent from the previous year,” Boyd Sigler, acting director of the Division of Highway Safety Administration told officers.

According to Chuck Wolfe with the Transportation Cabinet, despite a wealth of data showing that seat belts save lives — and also despite implementation of a primary seat belt law — Kentucky remains near the bottom nationally in seat belt usage rates at 72 percent.

Kentucky’s seat belt law became a “primary” or standard enforcement law on July 12, 2006, making it so that law enforcement officers can stop a vehicle solely for an occupant restraint violation. Previously, Kentucky’s law only allowed officers to cite for this violation if some other violation initiated the traffic stop.

Locally, participating in the Click it or Ticket campaign are Burnside Police, Ferguson Police, the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department and the Somerset Police Department.

Somerset Police Lt. Allan Coomer said officers with the Somerset Police Department will be participating in the campaign through overtime the next two weeks, which will allow for extra law enforcement to be out.

Coomer said Monday officers were on hand at both McDonald’s locations conducting seat belt checks to kick-off the campaign. He said those who were not wearing their seat belts were given information about the value of wearing a seat belt, while those who were received a coupon for a free chicken breakfast biscuit.

Coomer said he has seen plenty of instances where using a seat belt would have helped.

“I’ve been in emergency services for nearly 30 years and seen numerous fatalities where the person would have probably walked away if they were wearing a seat belt,” said Coomer.

Meanwhile, Chief Larry Wesley with the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department, said currently they have a traffic safety grant that concentrates on DUIs; however, they will also participate in the Click It or Ticket campaign.

Wesley said they will participate through overtime which puts more officers on the street.

Ferguson Police Chief David Moss they will strictly be enforcing the speed limit on Jacksboro, Murphy Avenue and the Old Ky. 1247, and watching for seat belt use.

Moss said there is a possibility of road blocks in Ferguson after 8 p.m. with the state police assisting.

Burnside Police Officer Bruce Blevins said their police force will also utlize overtime through grant money they’ve received and participate in the campaign.