RDU Police Department to Conduct Checkpoints as Part of Statewide "Click It or Ticket" Campaign

RDU Airport, NC – Raleigh-Durham International Airport law enforcement officers will conduct two seat belt checkpoints during North Carolina's "Click It or Ticket" campaign. The checkpoints will be held on Thursday, August 29 and Thursday, September 5, 2002, from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. The checkpoints will be located on East Terminal Boulevard near Rental Car Drive.

The checkpoints are part of "Click It or Ticket," the statewide campaign to save lives and prevent injuries on North Carolina roadways. The checkpoint will be one of more than a thousand such events that will be held August 26, 2002 - September 8, 2002. The goal of the campaign is to increase awareness of and compliance with North Carolina's seat belt and child passenger restraint laws.

"We're serious about seat belts and child safety seats at RDU and on our surrounding roadways," said Chief Donna E. Waters of the RDU Airport Police. "It is important that all motorists buckle up; it's the single most effective way to save lives and reduce injuries on our roadways."

North Carolina law requires all children up to age 16 to use a weight-appropriate restraint device, no matter where they ride in a vehicle. Children up to age 5 must ride in a child safety seat - in the back seat, if the vehicle has an active passenger side airbag.

In addition, all drivers and front-seat occupants must buckle up. Motorists not properly restrained can and will be ticketed, not only during "Click It or Ticket," but throughout the year.

North Carolina is a national leader in highway safety, and "Click It or Ticket" has saved hundreds of lives and prevented thousands of injuries. Because of "Click It or Ticket," North Carolina's seat belt use rate has increased to above 84 percent, one of the highest rates in the nation.

Motorists with questions about child safety seats or occupant protection laws may call the Governor's Highway Safety Program at (919) 733-3083 or visit its web site at www.ncdot.org/secretary/ghsp. For technical questions about seat belts or child safety seats, call the UNC Highway Safety Research Center toll free at (800) 672-4527.

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