A message from law enforcement before Thanksgiving

The following is a news release from the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office

IDAHO FALLS – The Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office is joining in a national effort to reach out to all Thanksgiving travelers with one important message: buckle up.

Historically, Thanksgiving is the busiest travel time of the year, putting more people on the road and unfortunately increasing the likelihood of crashes. Each year in our country, tens of thousands of passenger vehicle occupants die in motor vehicle crashes.

In 2013, more than 300 people were killed in crashes on Thanksgiving weekend alone. It’s a sad statistic, but even more sad is that many of those deaths could have been prevented with one simple click of a seat belt.

The United States Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that proper seat belt use reduces the risk of fatal injury to front seat passengers by 45 percent, and the risk of moderate to serious injury by 50 percent.

In 2013, approximately 12,584 people survived crashes because they were buckled up. If everyone had worn their seat belts that year, an additional 2,800 lives could have been saved. Younger drivers are the most likely to be unbuckled in a fatal crash.

In 2013, among passenger vehicle occupant fatalities where restraint use was known, the age groups 21 to 24 and 25 to 34 had the highest percentage (55%) of occupants killed who were unrestrained. And that’s just the point of this national seat belt campaign: Buckle Up America – Every Trip, Every Time.

NHTSA data also reveals that males are more likely to be unbuckled than females in a fatal crash. Fifty-four percent of the males killed in crashes in 2013 were not buckled up, as compared to 41 percent for females. Right now, the overall seat belt use rate in the United States is 87 percent, which is a major increase over the 79-percent use rate in 2003, but there is still a lot of room for further gains.

So this Thanksgiving, and every day of the year, make sure your seat belt is buckled before you start any road trip—whether it’s one mile or a thousand. The Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office will have extra resources dedicated to working high traffic areas watching for aggressive driving, traffic violations, child seat and seat belt violations through the Thanksgiving Holiday week. We thank those drivers who are patient, careful and buckle up every time they travel.

For more information about traveling safely during Thanksgiving, please visit www.nhtsa.gov.