The overwhelming majority of PA drivers buckle up…
Nov 3rd, 2009 | By Michael L. Saile, Jr., Esq. | Category: BlogsAn October 2009 report from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) shows that Pennsylvania drivers overwhelmingly make the choice to buckle-up. PennDOT found that 87.9 percent of motorists engage their seatbelts when driving, an increase from 86.7 percent of motorists in 2007.
It is believed that safety enforcement on the part of municipal police departments and the Pennsylvania State Police is in large part responsible for the rise in seat belt usage. Are you familiar with the “Click it or Ticket” campaign? PennDOT authorized close to $2.5 million of federal funds for use in this enforcement campaign. During the last 12 months, over 10,000 PA traffic violations for non-use of seat belts were issued in Pennsylvania.
PennDOT also attributes the record number of seat belt wearers to the fact that seat belt education has become more widely focused at students in grades kindergarten through 12. Law enforcement officers around the state not only present programs in schools, reaching some 47,000 students, but they also set up patrols around schools to urge young drivers and their passengers to buckle up. Students may go home and, in turn, pass on this important safety information to their parents and family members, creating a noticeable “pass-it-on” effect.
If you are unfamiliar with Pennsylvania’s seat belt law, it requires all front seat passengers to be buckled up. This PA traffic ticket can result in a fine of $60. Pennsylvania law further requires that children between the ages of 4 – 8 be restrained in an appropriate booster seat in any motor vehicle and children ages 8 – 18 wear a seat belt when riding in a motor vehicle, regardless of the area within the vehicle the child is seated. The seat belt law in Pennsylvania is secondary, meaning that drivers can only be issued a ticket if they have been stopped for another traffic offense.
Pennsylvania also has a primary child passenger safety law mandating that children under the age of 4 be properly restrained in an approved child safety seat anywhere the child is within the vehicle. Failure to comply with this law can result in a fine of $100.
PennDOT encourages drivers and passengers alike to continue to buckle up. This action will increase the chances of surviving a car accident. That’s good news for everyone. If you know someone involved in a PA or NJ car accident, the lawyers at Saile & Saile LLP can help pick up the pieces and help recover fair compensation from what a negligent driver may have taken.
