December 8, 2006
CONTACT: SID GAULDEN, 803-896-8409
ONE YEAR AFTER PRIMARY SEAT BELT LAW PASSAGE:
FATALITIES ARE DOWN; COMPLIANCE IS UP
MALES STILL LEAST LIKELY TO BUCKLE UP,
MOST FREQUENTLY CITED FOR NO SEAT BELT
COLUMBIA -- The South Carolina Department of Public Safety has reviewed highway safety statistics and enforcement results as the one-year anniversary of the primary seat belt law approaches. The good news is that seat belt compliance is up across the board. The bad news remains that the majority of people who die in collisions are not buckled up and the majority of those are male motorists. Through December 7, 2006, 716 males died in collisions compared to 254 females. Males also were most likely to receive a safety belt citation.
The motor vehicle fatality rate has fallen in 2006 compared to 2005. The overall fatality rate, while lower than last year, has not dropped as much as safety officials had hoped because of an increase in motorcycle and pedestrian deaths.
The Highway Patrol issued 111,688 safety belt citations from December 9, 2005, the date the mandatory seat belt law became effective, to December 4, 2006. Of that number, 69 percent of the seat belt citations were issued to men, while 31 percent went to women. Whites received 62 percent of the citations compared to 34 percent for blacks. Hispanics totaled three percent of the tickets issued. Seat belt citations issued by local law enforcement agencies are not included in these numbers.
The largest number of seat belt citations issued – 7,164 – was in York County, while Richland County, with 6,272 citations, had the second highest number of tickets issued. Motorists were less likely to receive a citation for not wearing their seat belts in McCormick County, where a total of 265 tickets have been issued since December 9, 2005.
Total Citations Issued: 111,688
White Females 20,970
Black Females 12,787
Hispanic Females 357
Other Females 161
Unknown Females 2
White Males 49,045
Black Males 24,918
Hispanic Males 2,988
Other Males 458
Unknown Males 2
The citation numbers are consistent with the South Carolina Statewide Survey of Safety Belt Use: June 2006, which concluded, among other findings, that “Females still had a much higher use rate than males…” A review of citations for the past year shows males cited 56 percent more for seat belt noncompliance than females.
“We have no doubt that the new seat belt has helped drive down motor vehicle deaths this year,” said SCDPS Director James K. Schweitzer. “But the mindset is slow to change. Sadly, 439 people still died this year not buckled up. Many of those would be with their families this holiday season had they made that simple decision to buckle up,” he said.
Male drivers’ lack of safety belt usage is one key factor in their overrepresentation in fatal motor vehicle collisions. Alcohol is often an aggravating factor in these collisions as well.
As of midnight Dec. 7, 2006, 970 people have died on South Carolina highways, compared to 1,026 in 2005. Of the 724 motor vehicle occupants who died in 2006, 439 were not wearing seat belts. These are preliminary numbers and are subject to change.