'Click It or Ticket' Starts In Arlington As Part Of National Campaign

ARLINGTON, VA — The Arlington County Police Department is teaming up with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on its Click It or Ticket campaign.

Arlington County Police and other law enforcement agencies across the country will increase enforcement of seatbelt laws starting Wednesday. The campaign, which will run through Nov. 30, aims to reduce the number of fatalities that occur when motorists fail to put on their seatbelt.

According to NHTSA, there were 333 passenger vehicle occupants killed in crashes during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend in 2020 — from 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2020, to 5:59 a.m. on Monday, Nov. 30. Sixty-seven percent of those fatal crashes occurred at night.

Virginia law requires those under the age of 18 to be properly secured in a safety belt or child safety seat, no matter where they are sitting in the vehicle. In addition, Virginia law requires those in the front seat of vehicles to be properly restrained, regardless of age, and those 18 and older can be ticketed.

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