KING OF PRUSSIA PA – A coalition of law enforcement agencies in Pennsylvania, ranging from municipal police departments to the state police, said Thursday (May 12, 2023) they will work together through June 4 to find and possibly issue citations to those who fail to wear seat belts for protection.
Beginning Monday (May 15), they added, similar police groups across the country will form a border-to-border network to enforce the “Click It or Ticket” seat belt campaign of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Its funding, passed from federal to state to local governments, in part covers overtime costs for police departments to participate in the effort.
“Always buckle up when you get in your vehicle, and make sure all passengers are buckled before you start driving,” Krys Johnson, a safety press officer for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, reminded drivers. She was among featured speakers during a Thursday media event at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.
Others joining the event included representatives of troopers in Pennsylvania and Delaware, the Philadelphia Police Department, the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety, and AAA Mid-Atlantic. They said they intend “to send a zero-tolerance message to unbuckled motorists through enforcement and public awareness activities.”
In Pennsylvania, all drivers as well as passengers age 18 and older are required to wear a seat belt when behind the wheel or in the front passenger seat. Drivers age 18 or older who are pulled over by police for another violation will receive a second ticket if they or their front-seat passengers aren’t wearing seat belts, officials warned.
The state’s Primary Seat Belt Law requires drivers and passengers under 18 years of age to buckle up anywhere in the vehicle. Additionally, drivers younger than 18 may not operate a vehicle where the number of passengers exceed the number of available seat belts.
Under its Primary Child Passenger Safety Law, children younger than 4 must be properly restrained in an approved child safety seat anywhere in the vehicle. Additionally, children younger than 2 must be secured in a rear-facing car seat until they meet the maximum weight or height requirements set by the seat manufacturer. Children must ride in an appropriate booster seat until their eighth birthday.
Photo by Ed Zbarzhyvetsky on Deposit Photos, used under license
