A campaign to target Colorado drivers not wearing seatbelts saw 775 citations issued in a week.
The Colorado Department of Transportation, Colorado State Patrol (CSP) and local law enforcement agencies completed a Click It or Ticket seat belt enforcement period from July 15 to 21 focusing on the rural areas of Colorado, where seat belt use is the lowest.
A preliminary total of 775 drivers were cited including 44 drivers who had an improperly restrained child under the age of 15 in the vehicle.
“A car crash can happen in the blink of an eye,” said Col. Matthew Packard, Chief of CSP. “Not taking that second to buckle up is a choice that could have tragic consequences. For those who received citations, we hope it will serve as a reminder about how simple it is to buckle up and to never risk the lives of yourself or your passengers.”
In 2018 there were 632 traffic fatalities on Colorado roads, including pedestrian, motorcyclists and occupants of passenger vehicles. Of those there were 220 unbuckled driver and passenger deaths, which accounted for more than half of the 416 total passenger vehicle fatalities in 2018. Colorado ranks in the bottom third for seat belt use in the United States.
