Buckle Up, Or Else

Better buckle up and make sure your passengers do the same thing next time your driving in a car. Lawmakers in Jefferson City are considering a bill  that requires all drivers and passengers in a car or truck to wear a seatbelt.

The primary enforcement seat belt law would allow police officers to pull over and ticket a driver solely for not wearing a seatbelt.

Since 1985 Missouri law requires the driver and front-seat passengers of cars and trucks that weigh less than 12,00 pounds to wear a seat belt. However, drivers can not be pulled over solely for not wearing not buckling up. 

Proponents of the proposed law argue that upgrading the state's secondary enforcement to primary will save the lives of 90 Missourians a year as well as prevent and 1,000 injuries. If passed, the state would be eligible to receive $16 million from the federal government.

According to the National Safety Council traffic accidents are the leading killer of children and young drivers. Eight-two percent of the 304 young drivers ages 14-24  killed in a car crash in 2002 were not wearing their seatbelt.

The Missouri Highway Patrol estimates the probability of a driver dying in a collision while wearing a seatbelt to be one in 1,017. The chance of death increases to one in 32 if the driver is unbelted.  

Currently 20 states have primary enforcement seat belt laws while 39 have secondary laws. Opponents to law fear that allow police officers to pull over a driver just for not wearing a seatbelt could lead to racial profiling and a reduction of personal freedoms.

In 2006 Missouri drivers buckled up 75.2 percent of the time falling behind the national average of 81 percent.  Only about 57.2 of teenager drivers chose to wear a seatbelt.

Student lobbyists visited the capitol to show support for the seat belt requirement. Allana Englehardt a high school junior from Eva said her school has lost three peers in traffic accidents. "You go to school on Monday and we sat literally in the hallway and cried for a week..we just sat and held each other and cried and no one talked in the halls there was no sound at all."

 Suggested Ideas:

• Conduct a survey or poll on student's use of seatbelts. Stand outside and watch students drive in and out of the parking lot or distribute surveys in classrooms (Note: if you do this make sure to explain to the readers the methods of your research, this is not a scientific test and it is important not to mislead readers into thinking so)
• Talk to a local police officer get his/her reaction, will this promote safety, create more a hassle for the department?
• Talk local student groups, do they promote seat-belt use?