Police announce 'Click It or Ticket' seat belt enforcement campaign

By Cindy Heflin Associate news director

Posted on Mon, May 14, 2012 : 5:47 p.m.

Michigan is bringing back its Click It or Ticket campaign first launched in 2005.

The campaign informing drivers of stepped-up seatbelt enforcement began Monday with ads on television, radio, the Internet and billboards and in movie theaters. Starting next Monday and over the following two weeks, officers from the Michigan State Police and eight other agencies will use enforcement zones to ticket motorists and passengers who don’t buckle up.

Michigan law requires all motorists and front seat passengers to wear seat belts. Children 8 to 15 years old must buckle up no matter where they are sitting. Those younger than 8 must ride in a car seat or booster seat until they are at least 4 feet 9 inches tall.

Photo courtesy of the Michigan State Police

Failure to follow the law can result in a $25 fine and another $40 in associated costs.

During the stepped-up enforcement, spotters will look for motorists and passengers not using seatbelts. The information will then be radioed to officers in enforcement zones who can issue tickets.

Washtenaw County agencies participating in the stepped-up enforcement campaign include state police as well as officers from Ann Arbor, Chelsea, Milan, Northfield Township, Pittsfield Township, Saline, the University of Michigan and the Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Office. Enforcement zones will be announced later, said Anne Readett, a spokeswoman for the Office of Highway Safety Planning, a division of the state police.

Federal traffic safety funds are paying for the effort.

Michigan has one of the highest seat belt use rates in the nation, with 94.5 percent of drivers and front seat passengers buckling up in 2011, the Office of Highway Safety Planning said in a news release. This is down from the record-high use rate of 97.9 percent in 2009.

While Michigan seat belt use is high overall, it drops to 87 percent for teens and young adults. Seat belt use falls to nearly 85 percent for male teens and young adults in pickups.

The classic Click it or Ticket television ad, the same one that aired in 2005, emphasizes the cost of getting a ticket. Research has shown that young men are more likely to heed such messages than those emphasizing the safety benefits of buckling up.

You can watch the ad below.