Statewide Traffic Enforcement and Safety Campaign Today Through Sept. 3rd

Click it or Ticket - Day or Night

(SALEM, Ore.) — Salem Police Officers are participating in three statewide traffic enforcement and safety campaigns. The third of the three campaigns will be from August 21 through September 3, 2017. This campaign will be dedicated to child passenger safety, educating drivers about the new child seat law and referring those needing help to the nearest child seat fitting station.

The department will be increasing traffic patrols during both daylight and nighttime hours for the purpose of enforcing seatbelt use and to address the issue of minors in pick-up truck beds, complementing the nationwide "Click it or Ticket" mobilization. This Oregon Safety Belt Overtime Campaign is a statewide selective traffic enforcement program that utilizes Federal funding from the US Department of Transportation. The goal of the campaign is to reduce the number of motor vehicle related deaths and injuries by increasing public awareness of laws regarding the three most prevalent factors contributing to traffic crash injuries: safety restraint use, speed and impaired drivers.

Oregon ranked third among all states in seatbelt usage in the national rankings released in May by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) with a rate of 96.2%. However, ODOT crash data reveals a safety belt use rate of only 75% among those killed in crashes in 2015. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for children ages one through twelve years old. Proper child car seat use increases crash survival by 71%.

Oregon law states that child passengers must be restrained in child safety seats until they weigh forty pounds or reach the upper weight limit for the car seat in use. Infants must ride in rear-facing seats until they reach two years of age unless the child turned age one prior to May 26, 2017.

Children over forty pounds or who have reached the upper weight limit for their forward-facing car seat must use boosters until they reach a height of 4'9" tall or age eight, AND the adult belt fits correctly. Rear-facing infant seats cannot be placed in a front seating position that is equipped with an airbag, and there is a national "best practice recommendation" calling for children to be placed in rear seating through age twelve. National statistics suggest rear seating reduces injury risk by 37% among that age group.

Seat belt fit can vary greatly from one vehicle to another and one child to another. If a child meets Oregon's legal requirements for moving from a booster seat to a safety belt but there are still doubts about whether the child fits in the belt in a particular vehicle, the following simple test can help:

Place the child in the vehicle without a booster seat and then ask these questions. Until the answer is YES to all of the questions, the child should stay in a booster seat.

1. Can the child sit all the way back against the vehicle seat?
2. Do the child's knees bend comfortably at the edge of the seat?
3. Does the shoulder belt cross the shoulder between the neck and arm?
4. Is the lap belt as low as possible, touching the thighs?
5. Can the child stay comfortably seated like this for the whole trip?

Oregon law requires "proper use" of restraints, meaning use of the entire belt system or child restraint as intended by the manufacturer.

For safety belt systems, "proper use" means lap belt placed low across hips and shoulder belt crossing center of the chest over the collarbone. Belts should be free of slack and lying flat with no twists or knots. If the shoulder belt portion of the belt rides up onto the neck or feels uncomfortable, comfort may be increased by using the built-in adjuster or by moving seat position. The shoulder belt should NOT be placed under the arm or behind the back -- this can cause serious internal injuries or ejection in a crash.

For assistance with child seats, refer to the seat manufacturer's instructions, vehicle owner's manual, or your local child seat fitting station. A list of fitting stations can be found at NHTSA: Get your car seat inspected

The Salem Police Department along with the Oregon Department of Transportation encourages all drivers and passengers to make a conscious effort to use their seatbelt at all times when traveling in a motor vehicle regardless of the distance traveled. We are also encouraging the proper use of child safety seats and restraints. Please contact the Salem Police Traffic Control Unit at 503-588-6171 with any questions about traffic safety.

Source: Salem Police Dept.