MISSOURI STATE HIGHWAY PATROL
a division of the
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY

Troop D Headquarters, 3131 East Kearney Street, Springfield, Missouri 65803

News Release

For further information please contact: Sergeant Jason M. Pace
417-895-6868
D162016
May 20, 2016

EMPHASIS: Click It Or Ticket Enforcement Campaign To Be Conducted In Troop D

Captain Juan Villanueva, commanding officer of Troop D, Springfield, announces that from May 23, 2016, through June 5, 2016, Troop D officers will be conducting “Click It Or Ticket” enforcement operations in Greene, Jasper, and Lawrence counties. The enforcement operations are a part of a national campaign focusing on seat belt violations in an effort to raise seat belt use and awareness. Sometime following this operation, representatives of the Missouri Department of Transportation’s Highway Safety Division will conduct a seat belt survey in selected counties throughout the state. During last year’s seat belt survey, the Missouri usage rate for all vehicles was 80%, which is below the national average of 87%.

During this enforcement effort, the Missouri State Highway Patrol will continue its zero tolerance enforcement stance in an effort to raise seat belt awareness and compliance. Motorists are reminded that every driver and front seat occupant of a passenger vehicle and all occupants less than 16 years of age are required to be secured in a properly fastened and adjusted safety belt or child restraint seat. Children less than four years old are required to be in an approved child restraint seat. Children ages four to seven years old, and who weigh at least 40 pounds, but less than 80 pounds, and are less than 4’9” tall, must be secured in a child passenger restraint system or booster seat appropriate for that child. Persons under 18 years of age operating or riding in a truck must wear a safety belt, regardless of the truck’s licensed gross weight. Any driver who falls under the guidelines of a Missouri graduated driver’s license and their passengers are required to wear a safety belt, regardless of age or vehicle type.

“Special enforcement operations such as these are very important and effective,” states Captain Villanueva. “Part of the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s mission is to reduce injuries and fatalities on our roadways. We know many lives could be saved if more people took a few extra seconds to buckle their seat belt.”

The only 100 percent survivable traffic crash is the one that never happens. Make sure everyone in the vehicle is properly restrained in a seat belt or child restraint. Every day as we travel on Missouri’s roadways, we trust that every driver on the road is going to obey the speed limit, pay attention, and drive sober. “Don’t Violate The Trust.”

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