The Eugene Police Department is reminding drivers about the lifesaving benefits of wearing a seat belt and proper child safety restraints this winter during the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's national Click It or Ticket high-visibility safety effort. The national seat belt campaign will run from January 31 to February 13, 2022.

"We need to emphasize the importance of buckling up, because we still come across drivers and passengers from time to time who are not wearing their seat belt, " said Traffic Safety Supervisor Sergeant Shawn Marsh. "It's the simplest thing you can do to limit injuries during a crash, and potentially save your life."

According to NHTSA, in 2019, there were 1,636 children under 12 were injured in Oregon traffic crashes, 10 percent were reported not using a child restraint system. In that same year, 22,215 passenger vehicle occupants killed in the United States, 47 percent were not wearing seat belts.

Participating law enforcement agencies will be taking a no-excuses approach to seat belt law enforcement, writing citations day and night. In Eugene, the maximum penalty for a seat belt violation is $150.

For more information on the Click It or Ticket mobilization, please visit www.nhtsa.gov/ciot.

Online Resources:

• Car Seat Types : Determine whether your child fits best in a rear-facing car seat, forward-facing car seat, booster seat, or seat belt.
• Car Seat Recommendations: Review NHTSA's recommendations for the best car seat for your child's age and size.
• Find and Compare: Find and compare car seats with NHTSA's handy car seat finder, which also searches specific brands.

Oregon Department of Transportation Seatbelts and Child Seats:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFC2K2AfdJM

More ODOT information on safety belts and child seats at:http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/TS/Pages/safetybelts.aspx

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