Click It, Don't Risk It this holiday season

In 2019, 44% of Idaho's fatal crashes were single vehicles that ran off the road, and 72% of those killed were not wearing seat belts.

As of last Tuesday, there have been at least 131 motor vehicle fatalities in Idaho this year. Eighty-eight of those were not buckled up.

This month alone, Idaho State Police reported two fatal crashes in the Coeur d'Alene area where the victims were not wearing seat belts.

Since Nov. 16, ISP, the Kootenai County Sheriff's Office, Coeur d'Alene Police Department, Post Falls Police Department, and the Rathdrum Police Department have participated in a nationwide two-week mobilization to provide seat belt education and enforcement throughout the Thanksgiving weekend.

Partnering with other law enforcement agencies nationwide and the Idaho Transportation Department Office of Highway Safety, local officers are using traffic stops to reaffirm the protection and safety that seat belts yield.

Since the start of the program, zero reported crashes have occurred in the area, and agencies have stopped over 200 drivers for education.

Coeur d'Alene police officer Anthony Tenney is part of the department's traffic team. He and the six other officers have been out canvassing the city for drivers since last Monday. On Friday, he was hanging out on Third Street, a common stop for monitoring traffic.

"Sometimes people are surprised when I give them a ticket. Other times they know they deserve it," Tenney said. "It's actually pretty common to see people not wearing seat belts. People either just forget, or they don't think it helps to keep them safe."

Idaho's "Click It Don't Risk It" Safety Restraint Law has been around since 2003. While it is a secondary violation that requires drivers to be pulled over for a primary offense, an officer can still write a $10 seat belt ticket without a primary citation.

"I think not wearing your seat belt is always dangerous. You can be in a low-speed crash, and it will really jostle you around," Tenney said. "I don't think people realize that maybe if they're driving slow and they get in a crash, it won't help them, but it really makes them much safer."

While the rate of seat belt use has gone up in the state, Idaho is still below the national average of 90.7%, said Bill Kotowski of the Idaho Transportation Department.

"It's hard to say what causes people to not wear seat belts. I think part of it is a cultural thing. Here in Idaho, we like to make our own decisions," Kotowski said.

The majority of fatalities in Idaho and nationwide happen on rural roads, Kotowski said. ITD's annual observational study on seat belts found that those on rural routes and pickup truck drivers are less likely to buckle up than other passenger vehicles. According to the study, in Kootenai County alone, pickup truck drivers were over 7% less likely to wear seat belts than drivers of sport utility vehicles.

"On those country roads or the 95 where you're going a higher speed if you don't buckle up and you roll your car, you have a high chance of getting killed," Kotowski said.

Over the last decade, Idaho's seat belt usage has increased from 78% in 2010 to 86% in 2019. It's a slow rise, but Kotowski said it shows that people are trying to make the safe choice. Seat belts, Kotowski noted, increase the odds of surviving a crash by 50%.

"It's not a guarantee," he said. "But it increases the odds of walking away without major injuries and gives you a better chance of getting home."

With Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the dangerous roads that winter brings just around the corner, ITD and local law enforcement hope the program reinforces seatbelt usage across North Idaho.

"We're urging folks who choose to travel this holiday to think of the friends and family and great food they have waiting for them, and to make the choices that will get them where they're going safely," North Idaho ISP District 1 Lt. Chris Schenck said.

Funding for the additional education and enforcement is provided through a grant from the ITD through the National Highway Traffic Administration.