Sometimes government goes too far in forcing us to be safe in our cars

That might be said of the growing red-light-camera movement in the suburbs, at least when such photo enforcement is put in place primarily to raise revenue from tickets for blowing red lights and not at all to improve safety at intersections.

But there is one instance where government wisely intruded on our lives, and in doing so clearly saved lives. It was when it passed laws requiring motorists to wear seat belts.

Such laws have encouraged more of us to buckle up and thus survive a crash. Research by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) shows that when used, lap/shoulder belts reduce the risk of fatal injury to front-seat passengers by 45 percent, and the risk of moderate-to-critical injury by 50 percent.

Indeed, the NHTSA estimates that the lives of 436 people in Illinois were saved last year because they were wearing seat belts during a crash.

The Illinois State Police, Gov. Rod Blagojevich and the Illinois Department of Transportation say those people are still alive today because of a law enacted in 2003 that gave police the authority to ticket a motorist solely for not wearing a seat belt. They note that seat-belt usage in Illinois has increased from 76.2 percent of motorists in 2003 to 90.5 percent today.

In turn, the number of deaths in crashes in the state have fallen dramatically from a high of 1,454 such fatalities in 2003. So far this year, highway fatalities are down 22 percent.

Still, the state won't be satisfied until every motorist is wearing a seat belt. And it has been encouraging 100 percent compliance, if that is possible, by stepping up enforcement of the seat belt law through its holiday Click It or Ticket campaign that runs through today.

Some might argue that this campaign is not about achieving life-saving perfection in use of seat belts.

Rather it is, like the red-light cameras, just a way to bring in more revenue at a time when state government desperately needs more money. But this is not the first time state, local and county police have used Click It or Ticket to crack down on seat-belt scofflaws.

They have conducted this campaign several times before, when state finances weren't in turmoil.

Avoiding a ticket is simple. Simply buckle up. It's neither difficult nor uncomfortable.

And keep this in mind before arguing that the state's seat-belt law is another example of Big Brother stripping you of your individual rights and hard-earned money: The NHTSA estimates that 105 people in Illinois would be alive today if all unrestrained vehicle occupants involved in fatal crashes in 2007 had worn their seat belts.

If just a few seconds had been taken to buckle up, many lives would not have been cut short.