Madison County, Nebraska—As an integral part of this year’s national Click It or Ticket seat belt campaign, which will take place May 20 through June 2, 2019, the Madison County Sheriff’s Office will be teaming up with law enforcement nationwide for a Border to Border (B2B) kickoff event. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is asking all states to participate in B2B, a one-day national seat belt awareness event on May 20, which is coordinated by participating state highway safety offices and their respective law enforcement liaisons. The B2B program aims to increase law enforcement participation by coordinating highly visible seat belt enforcement and providing seat belt fact sheets for drivers at heavily traveled, highly visible state border checkpoints. 

According to NHTSA, in 2017, there were 10,076 unbuckled passenger vehicle occupants killed in crashes in the United States. In that same year, 55 percent of passenger vehicle occupants killed at night (6 p.m.–5:59 a.m.) were not wearing their seat belts. That’s why one focus of the Click It or Ticket campaign and the B2B kickoff event is nighttime enforcement. Participating law enforcement agencies will be taking a no-excuses approach to seat belt law enforcement, writing citations day and night. In Nebraska, the maximum penalty for a seat belt violation is $25.

“The Border to Border component of the Click It or Ticket campaign is so important because it raises awareness about seat belt safety during the time period when seat belts are least used,” said Madison County Sheriff Todd Volk. “With an increased number of cars flooding the roads and highways due to the upcoming Memorial Day holiday, it’s imperative we get the word out about the importance of seat belt safety.”

“In 2017, we lost six (latest figures) community members due to motor vehicle accidents,” said Madison County Sheriff Todd Volk. One area of concern is on Highway 81, in the area of Madison and the Highway 32 intersection. According to stats published on https://www.malloy-law.com/bethesda-personal-injury/, in this studied five mile area on Highway 81, between mile markers 140 to 145, in 2018 there were nineteen accidents, ten injury and two fatalities accidents. A recent observation of one-hundred vehicles travelling on Highway 81 in this area, showed only seventy-three drivers wearing their seatbelt.

“This should be at 100%,” said Sheriff Todd Volk.

“If the enforcement crackdown wakes people up to the dangers of unrestrained driving, we’ll consider our mission to be a success,” said Sheriff Todd Volk. “If you know a friend or a family member who does not buckle up when they drive, please ask them to consider changing their habits. Help us spread this lifesaving message before one more friend or family member is killed as a result of this senseless inaction. Seat belts save lives, and everyone—front seat and back, child and adult—needs to remember to buckle up—every trip, every time.”

For more information on the Click It or Ticket mobilization, please visit www.nhtsa.gov/ciot.