EDISON — Township police are cracking down on drivers and their passengers who violate seatbelt laws through the end of May as part of the nationwide “Click It or Ticket” campaign.
The annual initiative includes high-visibility police seatbelt checkpoints and saturation patrols, as well as local and national publicity designed to ensure that drivers and passengers recognize the life-saving value of seatbelts.
“Using a seatbelt 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 2012 alone, seatbelts saved an estimated 12,000 lives nationwide.”
The front seatbelt usage rate in New Jersey stands at 87.6 percent, according to police. Poedubicky noted that the goal for 2015 is to increase that rate to 90 percent.
“We will be stepping up our enforcement efforts of all traffic laws as part of the two-week campaign to improve the safety for all our motorists and pedestrians alike.”
During the 2014 “Click It or Ticket” campaign, 374 police agencies participated in the two-week initiative, issuing 26,635 seatbelt citations and 4,363 speeding summonses, also making 944 arrests for drunken driving, police said.