NCJ Number
197806
Journal
Police Chief Volume: 69 Issue: 11 Dated: November 2002 Pages: 40-42
Date Published
November 2002
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This article describes California's efforts to promote the use of vehicle seat belts.
Abstract
California enacted a legislative mandate for safety belt use in 1986. This allowed police officers to cite a motorist for failure to wear a safety belt, but only after the motorist had been stopped for another violation. The statute boosted safety belt compliance by more than 60 percent the first year. With the law in place, the State began a program of enforcement and public education. To give the safety belt campaign an additional boost, the California Highway Patrol formed the California Safety Belt Task Force in 1988. The task force teamed with a broad spectrum of public and private sector organizations to create support for safety belt usage. In the early 1990's, California safety belt usage increased steadily until it apparently peaked at about 71 percent in 1992. In January 1993, California became the first State to implement an uninterrupted change from secondary to primary safety belt enforcement, authorizing officers to stop nonbelted drivers or passengers based solely on safety belt violations. In the first year, safety belt use rose from 71 percent to 83 percent. Since that time, belt use has increased slowly, interrupted only occasionally by slight drop-offs. California's strategy to increase safety belt usage focuses on three key areas: market research to determine what groups fall within the 9 percent of people not using safety belts; a comprehensive public awareness and education campaign designed to convey to the State's diverse communities the connection between safety belt use and saving lives; and increased private sector and corporate partnerships to expand the campaign's reach. Elements of the strategy are belt-use surveys before the campaign begins; dissemination of information about impending enforcement activities; intensive, high-visibility enforcement; belt-use surveys after the campaign ends; and release of survey results to the public.