PennDOT, the Delaware River Port Authority (DRPA), Buckle Up PA, and state and local police from Pennsylvania and New Jersey, recently held a media event at the Walt Whitman Bridge in Philadelphia, to kick-off the Border-to-Border seat belt enforcement campaign as part of the national “Click It or Ticket” campaign through June 3.
“It is critical that all motorists, drivers and passengers, buckle up each and every time they get into a vehicle, 24-hours a day, seven days a week,” says PennDOT District 6 Executive Kenneth M. McClain. “Wearing a seatbelt is the single most effective way to avoid being killed in a crash.
As part of the initiative, municipal police departments across southeast Pennsylvania and Pennsylvania State Police will conduct seat belt enforcement activities to send a ‘zero tolerance’ message to motorists: driving or riding unbuckled will result in a ticket, no matter what state you travel through.
Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties’ municipal police departments will focus on roadways with high unbelted crashes, injuries and deaths by initiating a combination of enforcement and public awareness activities.
Drivers are reminded that if you or a passenger are under 18 years of age, you must buckle up, and children under 8 years old must be properly restrained. Drivers and front-seat passengers over 18 years old who are cited for another traffic violation will receive a second ticket if they’re unbuckled.
Proper seat belt use can increase your chances of surviving a crash by up to 60 percent. According to PennDOT 2017 data there were 4,836 unbelted crashes in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties, with 79 fatalities in those crashes.
