Lombard police list 6 myths about seat belt use

LOMBARD, Illinois— With the national “Click It or Ticket” campaign scheduled to begin this weekend, the Lombard Police Department would like to share some of the more popular seat belt myths for which motorists should be aware:

• MYTH 1: It is better to be thrown clear from the wreckage in the event of a crash.

FACT: An occupant of a vehicle is four times more likely to be fatally injured when thrown from the vehicle.

• MYTH 2: Safety belts prevent your escape from a burning or submerged vehicle.

FACT: Safety belts can keep you from being knocked unconscious, improving your chances of escape. Fire or submersion occurs in less than 5 percent of fatal large crashes.

• MYTH 3: A large truck will protect you. Safety belts are not necessary.

FACT: In 2006, 805 drivers and occupants of large trucks died in truck crashes and 393

of them were not wearing safety belts.

• MYTH 4: Safety belts aren't necessary for low-speed driving.

FACT: In a frontal collision occurring at 30 mph, an unbelted person continues to move forward at 30 mph, causing him/her to hit the windshield at that rate. This is the same velocity a person falling from the top of a three-story building would experience upon impact with the ground. Physics are unforgiving. An unrestrained 150 lb. person will strike the windshield, steering wheel, or dashboard with 4,500 ft. lbs. of force. 33 ft. lbs of force are required to fracture your skull.

• MYTH 5: I don't need to wear my seatbelt because my car is equipped with airbags.

FACT; Air bags are called supplemental restraints because they are designed to work best in combination with safety belts. You should always wear your safety belt whether or not your car has an air bag. Serious or even fatal injuries can occur when someone is very close to, or in direct contact with an air bag module when the air bag deploys. Such injuries may be sustained by unrestrained or improperly restrained occupants who slide forward in the seat during pre-crash braking.

• MYTH 6: I can't be ticketed for not wearing my seatbelt if I buckle my seatbelt across my waist. It doesn't matter if my shoulder belt is under my arm or behind me.

FACT: Chapter 625 ILCS 5/12-603.1 of the Illinois Compiled Statutes requires that, “Each driver and front seat passenger of a motor vehicle operated on a street or highway in this State shall wear a properly adjusted and fastened seat safety belt…” You CAN and WILL be ticketed for not wearing your seatbelt properly. Your shoulder belt does not give you any protection when it is behind your back. People who wear shoulder belts under their arms risk rib fractures along with serious or fatal injuries to internal organs.

Members of the Lombard Police Department know from personal experience that traffic crash statistics are actually mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, aunts, uncles and friends. Too often we must tell families their loved ones would be alive if they had only worn a safety belt. Thanks in part to high-visibility enforcement campaigns like Click It or Ticket, in 2010, Illinois had an all-time high safety belt usage rate of 92.6 percent.

“The tragic reality is that in our state seven percent of the public is still not convinced that they need to buckle up every trip, every time, day and night,” pointed out Officer Joe Grage of Lombard's Traffic Safety Unit. “We want 100 percent of motorists to buckle up. Buckling up costs you nothing, but the costs of not buckling up may be a ticket, or worse — your life,” he added.

Lombard will be participating in the national “Click It or Ticket” campaign day and night from May 13-May 30.