Albany Police Participating in 'Click It or Ticket' Seatbelt Enforcement

It only takes two seconds to buckle up. Two seconds! And those two seconds could literally save your life.

They will also keep you from getting a ticket and a fine. On Friday, May 23, 2014, the Albany Police Department will join forces with the Office of Traffic Safety and the California Highway Patrol to focus enforcement efforts on drivers who don’t buckle up.

They will be on the lookout for drivers and passengers - including passengers in the back seat, day and night. The minimum ticket cost of an adult seat belt violation in California is $162 and up, and a minimum of $480 for not properly restraining a child under 16.

If the parent is not in the car, the driver gets the ticket. Click It or Ticket debuted in California in 2005, and since then the state’s seat belt use rate has increased from 92.5% in 2005 to a record high of 97.4% in 2013, representing over 2 million more vehicle occupants who have started buckling up, but leaves 800,000 still unbuckled and vulnerable. 

Funding for Click It or Ticket is from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. While this year’s enforcement runs from May 19 through June 1, motorists should know that officers are out enforcing seat belt laws year-round. So when you load up the family for a road trip, a trek across town or just driving to school or work, please do so safely – every trip, every time, day and night. 

Don’t put your own life at risk, or the life of your family or friends. Buckle up. For additional information, please contact Sgt. Chris Willis, 510-525-7300, cwillis@albanyca.org 


—Information submitted by Albany Police