Buckle that seat belt and put down the cellphone.
King County motorists can expect to see law enforcement patrolling city and King County roads in search of unbuckled drivers and passengers as well as drivers using their cellphones during emphasis patrols May 20 to June 2.
Washington has one of the highest seat belt use rates in the country due, in large part, to the highly visible “Click It or Ticket” campaign which includes publicity, extra enforcement, and signage, according to a Washington Traffic Safety Commission media release.
In June 2002, when the primary seat belt law went into effect, approximately 82 percent of Washington drivers wore seat belts and today, nearly 97 percent of Washington drivers are buckling up.
Now officers also will focus on another important traffic safety concern – distracted drivers who are texting and talking on their cellphones.
Last year, during this same time period, officers on routine and extra patrols statewide issued 3,171 seat belt violations amongst the 11,047 motorists who were stopped and issued 1,059 cellphone violations were written.
In King County, the Auburn, Bellevue, Black Diamond, Burien, Covington, Federal Way, Issaquah, Kent, Kirkland, Maple Valley, Mercer Island, Newcastle, Port of Seattle, Redmond, Renton, Sammamish, SeaTac, Seattle, Tukwila and Woodinville Police Departments, and the Washington State Patrol will team up and participate in the extra patrols, with the support of the King County Target Zero Task Force.
These and all extra patrols are part of Target Zero—striving to end traffic deaths and serious injuries in Washington by 2030.
For more information, visit www.targetzero.com. Additional information on the Washington Traffic Safety Commission can be found at www.wtsc.wa.gov.
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