Seat belt intiative slated

PUTNAMVILLE -- Lt. Dan Jones, commander of the Putnamville State Police Post, has announced that troopers from the Putnamville Post are participating in the "Click It or Ticket" campaign which starts May 21 and runs through Memorial Day weekend.

"There is an emphasis this year on convincing more motorists to buckle up day and night," Jones said. "Troopers will be observing for unrestrained motorists around the clock."

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration seat belts saved 13,250 lives nationwide in 2008 alone. NHTSA research also estimates that hundreds of lives could have been saved in Indiana if seat belts had been used during the same year.

There were 525 motorists killed in passenger vehicles on Indiana roadways in 2008, 267 of these were unrestrained.

To help ensure the safety of all motorists during this holiday period, the Indiana State Police will also be participating in Operation C.A.R.E. (Combined Accident Reduction Effort). Operation C.A.R.E. is a federally funded program which allows additional troopers to patrol area roadways over the holiday periods. Troopers will be specifically looking for drivers who speed, follow too closely, make unsafe lane changes, drive aggressively and fail to buckle up or properly restrain their children.

The Indiana State Police encourage all motorists to observe the following safety tips: