The extended Holiday Weekend is coming, and the Vidalia Police Department wants to ensure everyone arrives safely at their destination.
Monday morning, Sergeant Joshua Blake of the newly formed Traffic Unit of the VPD said, “We are partnering with the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety in this Click-It-Or-Ticket Campaign, and it’s something that is done during Memorial Day and Thanksgiving. The initiative, of course, is to ensure drivers are complying with the law to be bucked up.”
Sgt. Blake says law enforcement won’t only be more watchful of adults not following the law of wearing their seatbelt, but also of violation regarding children secured in vehicles.
“We will definitely be on the lookout for not only drivers, but also for adults who don't have children in the vehicle buckled in safely and/or any passengers who require safety restraints,” he said.
Failure to comply with the law will result in a hit on the offenders’ wallets.
“Normally failure to use seatbelts has a minimal fine associated with them,” Sgt. Blake said. “If we stop you, typically you may get a citation and then we see that you get buckled in and send you on your way. But during this campaign this weekend, there will no leniency and if you are caught not wearing a seatbelt you will receive a ticket.”
According to the Sergeant, fatalities in Georgia are down so far this year, and he adds, “Of course, we proud of that and that is due to higher patrolling and enforcement of the law to wear a seatbelt. However, 59 percent of the fatalities this year in the state can be attributed to the deceased not wearing a safety belt.”
Sgt. Blake said the objective of the higher patrolling of seatbelt wearing this weekend isn’t to issue more tickets, but rather, he said, “We want everyone to have safe travels and make sure that everyone is buckled up, safe, and has a happy Thanksgiving with their families and the ones they love.”
The Click-It-Or-Ticket Campaign for the Vidalia Police Department runs through Saturday, November 30, but Sgt. Blake reminds everyone that wearing a seatbelt is the law year-round and has proven to save lives.
