Law enforcement officers from the Dunellen Police Department will join with police from around the country in cracking down on unbuckled motorists and passengers as part of the national “Click it or Ticket” campaign. A proclamation supporting the campaign was read at last night’s Dunellen Borough council meeting.
Beginning May 21 and running through June 3, the annual”Click it or Ticket” national mobilization utilizes high visibility seat belt checkpoints and saturation patrols,in combination with local and national publicity efforts, to reiterate the life-saving value of seat belts.
“Using a seat belt is the simplest way for a driver and his or her passengers to protect themselves when traveling,” said Gary Poedubicky, Acting Director of the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety. “In 2016, it is estimated that more than 14,500 lives were saved nationally by the proper use of seat belts.”
Poedubicky added that a key focus of this year’s campaign is to promote seat belt usage by adults in all seating positions in the vehicle, both front AND rear seats.The front seat belt usage rate in New Jersey currently stands at 94.07%. However, adults riding in rear seats are buckling up at a significantly lower rate, only 48% in the most recent survey.
During the 2017 “Click it or Ticket” campaign,350 New Jersey police agencies participated in the two-week initiative. As a result of the effort, law enforcement officers issued 17,792 seat belt citations, 6,363 speeding summonses and made 976 impaired driving arrests.