Drivers in North Bay and across Ontario are being encouraged to buckle up as Ontario Provincial Police is clamping down on drivers who are not wearing their seat belts.
So often such initiatives are focused on drivers, but the police have said they are also targeting passengers in cars this time around.
“Adult seat belt use is the most effective way to save lives and reduce injuries in motor vehicle collisions,” says OPP Deputy Commissioner Brad Blair. “Yet thousands of adults still do not wear their seat belts on every trip. Not wearing a seat belt can be a fatal decision even on short, familiar journeys and at low speeds.
“We know that enforcement of seat belt laws does make a difference in getting more people to buckle up, so OPP officers will be diligent during this campaign.”
Drivers can now expect a fine of $240 and two demerit points on their license for seat belt infractions, while passengers of 16 year old or over must also buckle up or face a fine. OPP said that parents should also make sure that passengers under 16 years of age are properly secured with a belt, booster seat, or other appropriate equipment considering their age, height, and weight.
Road accident deaths where a vehicle occupant was not wearing a seat belt reached 42 so far this year, which is up from 34 through the same period in 2014. Between September 7 and 13, seven people were killed in Ontario who were not wearing a seat belt.
Young drivers are especially at risk as the 16 to 24 age group tends to be more negligent about wearing a seat belt. You drivers represent 13 per cent of all drivers on the road, but manage to account for 24 per cent of all fatal deaths on the roads. There is a direct link between auto accident death and an occupant not wearing a seat belt, with 45.5 percent of all drivers killed on the road in Canada through 2014 not wearing a belt.