Buffalo Grove Police Department has begun their seat belt enforcement program. Violators are ordered to pull into a parking lot where awaiting officers write tickets for failure to wear safety belts. At times cars were flowing into the violator’s lot at a rate greater than one per minute. And sometimes those cars had multiple tickets issued when Graduated Driver License laws are violated.
Under Graduated License Law, if passengers are not seatbelted in the vehicle while a teenager is driving, more tickets are written. If the driver is under age 18, he/she can be ticketed for anyone under age 18 who is unrestrained in the vehicle. Any passenger age 16 or 17 unbuckled in the front seat may be ticketed as well. It is at the discretion of the law enforcement officer whether to cite unbuckled passengers age 16 or 17 in the back seat. Each violation is $55. So if the driver is under age 18 and three 16-year-old passengers and the driver are unbelted, for example; the driver could get four violations (4 X $55 = $220).
Last year between May 16 and June 1, the the Buffalo Grove Police Department ticketed 1,323 drivers and passengers for not wearing seat. The Buffalo Grove Police Department used 33 organized enforcement checkpoint throughout Buffalo Grove.
Click It or Ticket is a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration mobilization campaign aimed at increasing the use of seat belts among young people in the United States. The campaign relies heavily on targeted advertising aimed at teens and young adults.