Survey shows motorists are fastening the seatbelt

Results of a recent Special Traffic Enforcement Program (STEP), of which the Mt. Pleasant Police Department was a participant, revealed that the vast majority of drivers are buckling up.

Some 95 percent of drivers were wearing seatbelts in a survey conducted prior to the program. A sample taken after the program had 93 percent of drivers in seatbelts.

There were 71 contacts made during the program, which ran from March 16-19. Sixteen citations and over 75 warnings were issued with some vehicles having multiple infractions. Three subjects were arrested for operating while intoxicated (OWI), there were three felony arrests and six narcotics arrests. There were also 32 motorist assists during the program.

Lt. Lyle Murray, of the Mt. Pleasant Police Department, said wearing a seatbelt while in a motor vehicle cannot be over emphasized. Seventy-seven percent of all occupants ejected from a vehicle during a crash are killed. In 2013, Iowa had 317 traffic fatalities with more than 43 percent, or 107 motorists not restrained by a seatbelt.