POTTSTOWN POLICE DEPARTMENT
PRESS RELEASE - day, , 200
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact person: Corporal Charles McClincy, Pottstown Police Department, 100 High St., 610-970-6591
February 12-18, 2006
During National Child Passenger Safety Week, February 12-18, 2006, the Pottstown Police Department and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation want to remind families that the theme for this year, "Buckle Up for Life!" is a consistent buckle up message that people should buckle up throughout their entire life - from their first ride home after birth, continuing throughout life into adulthood, including our senior citizens.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) statistics for 2004 show 68 percent of the vehicle occupant passengers 13 to 15 years old killed in traffic crashes were not using restraints - the highest percentage for any age group.
The second message for this year's "Buckle Up for Life!" theme is that by buckling up your seat belt on every ride, you may be saving your own life if involved in a crash. NHTSA data also shows that among vehicle occupant passengers over 4 years old, safety belts saved an estimated 15,434 lives in 2004. IF ALL vehicle occupant passengers over 4 wore safety belts, 21,273 lives could have been saved in 2004. That is an additional 5,839 lives!
As part of PennDOT's Buckle Up PA "Click It or Ticket. 2 Tickets, 2 Fines" Campaign, Pottstown police officers will be on the lookout for motorists who need a reminder to buckle their children and vehicle occupants.
Under Pennsylvania's child passenger safety law, all drivers are responsible for securing children in the appropriate child restraint system. All children from birth up to age 4 must be secured in an approved child safety seat anywhere in the vehicle. Violators of this primary law are subject to a fine of up to $100 plus Court Costs, EMS, Cat Fund, and Administrative Fees, bringing the ticket up to $180.50.
All children age 4 up to age 8 must be secured in a seat belt system and appropriate child booster seat anywhere in the vehicle. Violators of this secondary law are subject to a fine of up to $100 plus EMS, Cat Fund and Administrative Fees, bringing the ticket total up to $150.
All children age 8 up to age 18 must be secured in a seat belt system anywhere in the vehicle.
Violators of this secondary law are subject to a $10 fine plus EMS, Cat Fund, and Administrative Fees, bringing the ticket total to $60.
Under Pennsylvania's seat belt law, all drivers are responsible for the front seat occupants to wear a properly adjusted and fastened seat belt system. Violators of this secondary law are subject to a $10 fine plus EMS, Cat Fund, and Administrative Fees, bringing the ticket total to $60.
All drivers under 18 years of age may not operate a motor vehicle in which the number of passengers exceeds the number of available safety seat belts in the vehicle. Violators of this primary law are subject to a $10 fine plus EMS, Cat Fund, and Administrative Fees, bringing the ticket total to $60.
If you are unable to afford a car seat, call 1-800-CAR-BELT to find the nearest car seat loaner program.
National Child Passenger Safety Week is also a good time to check your car seat.
("To locate the closest car seat clinic, please call 1-800 CAR BELT")
For more information on child passenger safety call 1-800-CAR-BELT or the Pottstown Police Department at
610-970-6591
Editor’s Note: See attached tip sheets for child safety seat, seat belt use, and pre-teen advice for
parents.
Tips to make sure everyone in the family is buckled right!
Read both the car seat instructions and the vehicle owner's manual before installing car seats.
All children under 13 should ride in the back seat.
When installing your child's car seat place your weight on the car seat. Lock the seat belt according to the vehicle's instructions on the seat belt or in the owner's manual. Check the installation and allow no more than 1 inch of side-to-side or forward movement.
Infants should ride rear facing and semi reclined to no more than 45 degrees, until at least age 1 and 20 pounds. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends keeping children rear facing to the highest weight or height allowed by the child safety seat's manufacturer. Remember NEVER place a rear-facing infant in front of a passenger side air bag. Place the harness in the slots at or below the shoulders. Tighten the harness until it lies in a relatively straight line without any slack or sagging but not so tight as to press into the child's body causing discomfort. Adjust the chest clip on the harness to armpit level (if manufacturer provides one).
Toddlers ride forward facing and upright once they reach at least age 1 and 20 pounds. Children should stay in the forward facing seat with a harness until they are 40 pounds. Place the harness through the top reinforced slots on the seat (unless instructions say otherwise). Tighten the harness until it lies in relatively straight line without any slack or sagging as indicated in 4 above. Place the chest clip at armpit level.
NHTSA recommends that all children who have outgrown child safety seats be properly restrained in a booster seat until they are at least eight years old, and approximately 4 feet 9 inches tall. Use the belt positioning booster seat with a lap and shoulder belt properly adjusted to fit a small child over the hips and shoulder.
Children should stay in a belt positioning booster seat until the lap and shoulder belt fit them correctly.
For children age eight through adult, it is important to use a properly positioned seat belt. Properly positioned means that the shoulder belt is across the shoulder and the lap belt is low and snug across the hips. NEVER place a shoulder belt behind the back or under the arm.
To be able to fit a safety belt properly, a child must:
be tall enough to sit without slouching,
Keep his/her back and buttocks against the vehicle seat back,
keep his/her knees completely bent over the edge of the vehicle seat,
keep his/her feet flat on the floor, and
be able to stay comfortably seated this way.
BUCKLE UP EVERY TIME, EVERY RIDE!
Safety Advice for Older Children
Involve "tweens" in family discussions about safety in all motor vehicles.
Teach children that safety belts save lives and that an unbuckled passenger is likely to injure others.
Make sure the shoulder belt fits correctly across the center of the chest and collarbone, and the lap belt remains low and snug across the hips/upper thighs, and that good posture is maintained.
Make sure both a lap and shoulder belts are used. A lap belt alone does not provide adequate upper body protection. Putting a shoulder belt behind the back or under the arm can cause severe injury.
Teach "tweens" to counter peer pressure with the facts; such as: "Your best defense in a crash is wearing your seat belt" and "You are more likely to be killed in a crash by being ejected". A properly worn seat belt protects them in five ways:
§ Prevents ejection from the vehicle. Ejected occupants are 4 times more likely to die.
§ Contacts the strongest parts of the body.
§ Spreads the crash forces across the child's body.
§ Provides "ride-down" in a crash. Ride-down is the extension of time during a crash that the forces are experienced by the occupant. A quick change in speed is what causes injury. Safety belts and child safety seats are designed to help slow down the body in a crash.
§ Protect the “tween's” head, neck, and spine.
If carpooling, make sure that other drivers have the same rules as you do and they enforce them in their vehicles as well.
Limit the number of passengers you transport to avoid driver distraction.
Create a list of "car rules" with your "tweens" so they know what is expected. Discuss who your "tweens" are allowed to ride in a car with, when your "tweens" should refuse a ride, and that buckling up is always required.
Make sure your "tweens" always have money or a cell phone to call home for a ride.
Always be a good role model by buckling up every time and require everyone in the vehicle to be properly restrained.
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Copyright © 1999 Pottstown Police Department. All rights reserved.
Revised: February 06, 2006