The East Ridge Police Department is partnering with the Tennessee Highway Safety Office for its annual Seatbelts Are For Everyone (SAFE) campaign. This statewide initiative is designed to increase seatbelt usage and child passenger safety restraint usage through the implementation of occupant-protection programs, public events and checkpoints throughout local communities across Tennessee. The SAFE campaign begins Feb. 1 and concludes on Aug. 1.
"The East Ridge Police Department believes that seat belts do save lives.
We want to remind drivers and passengers to buckle up for themselves, for loved ones for all citizens of East Ridge," officials said.
2018 will be the fifth year that the THSO has sponsored the SAFE campaign. Last year yielded the following results:
1,480 child restraint violations
16,571 seat belt citations
835 other seat belt enforcement activities
“In 2016, Tennessee’s average seatbelt usage rate was 88.95 percent,” said THSO Director Vic Donoho. “Last year, the state’s usage rate decreased to 88.51 percent. Our goal for this year is to achieve 100 percent seatbelt usage across Tennessee through the SAFE campaign and other occupant-protection initiatives”
In Tennessee, a disproportionate percentage of unrestrained fatalities tend to occur between the hours of 6 p.m. and 5:59 a.m. Historically, approximately fifty percent of Tennessee’s traffic fatalities are unbelted. That percentage increases to nearly sixty when nighttime crashes are examined. Therefore, participating agencies will focus special attention toward nighttime seatbelt enforcement during the SAFE campaign this year.