MILWAUKEE -- Hundreds of law enforcement agencies across the state will be watching for unbuckled drivers and passengers during the annual Click It or Ticket campaign this week.
The campaign will run from Monday, May 23 to Sunday, June 5.
Whenever officers see an unbelted driver or passenger, they will stop the vehicle and issue a ticket.
"People drive around and walk around and live as if it's never going to happen to them," said Milwaukee Fire Deputy Chief Aaron Lipski. "They think they're never going to be the one."
Lipski sees first hand the damage injuries caused by crashes and wrecks, and the increasing severity when drivers and passengers aren't wearing seatbelts.
"You can't just say I'm not going to wear a seatbelt because I've got an air bag," Lipski said. "They're designed to work together. If you're bouncing around the vehicle or thrown out the window, the laws of physics take over."
According to WisDOT statistics, approximately 86 percent of Wisconsin motorists buckle up, which is an all-time high in the state. However, approximately half of the drivers and passengers killed in crashes last year in Wisconsin were not wearing a safety belt. In 2015, there were nearly 55,000 convictions in Wisconsin for failure to fasten a seatbelt.
For more information, visit zeroinwisconsin.gov
