State issues 14,600 tickets in seat belt campaign

A total of 14,600 tickets were issued last month during the statewide Click It or Ticket campaign to raise awareness about seat belt use and child passenger safety.

Posted 7:51 p.m. Jun 11, 2014 — Updated 7:51 p.m. Jun 11, 2014

RALEIGH, N.C. — A total of 14,600 tickets were issued last month during the statewide Click It or Ticket campaign to raise awareness about seat belt use and child passenger safety.

To ensure the enforcement message reached motorists statewide, state and local law enforcement officers increased patrols and manned more than 11,400 checkpoints during the campaign, which was held May 19 to June 1.

“Enforcement is key in changing driver and passenger behavior,” said Don Nail, director of the Governor’s Highway Safely Program. “Our law enforcement partners issue seat belt citations to save lives. Wearing a seat belt decreases your chances of suffering critical injuries or even death in a crash by 50 percent.”

The amplified enforcement effort resulted in 3,662 more citations this May than during the same period last year. Drivers in Wake County received the highest number of citations with 1,177 tickets. Visit the North Carolina Department of Transportation website for a list of citations per county.

In addition to cracking down on unrestrained drivers and passengers, officers across the state charged 1,987 motorists with driving while impaired. They also issued 23,929 speeding citations and 13,566 criminal violations, including 2,697 drug charges.

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