TOPEKA – Present in 94 schools across the state of Kansas, the Seatbelts Are For Everyone (S.A.F.E.) program showed positive change in teen seatbelt use.

In its third year, S.A.F.E., a program developed to reduce the number of motor-vehicle-related injuries and fatalities among Kansas high school students by increasing their safety belt use, was present in 94 schools in 29 counties across the state of Kansas. After an unannounced seatbelt check at each school, student leaders focused on executing traffic safety activities and educating their peers on the importance of seatbelt use. 96 percent of participating schools experienced positive changes in the number of students wearing their seatbelts.

In the 2010/2011 school year, 40,100 students attended a S.A.F.E. school and heard traffic safety messages each month. Throughout the year, students were given the opportunity to sign a card pledging to wear their seatbelt. After a two-week period of enforcement, a second unannounced seatbelt check was conducted and the results served as an indicator of the effectiveness of the S.A.F.E. challenge.

The average baseline seatbelt usage rate was 63.9 percent. After traffic safety education, pledge card signing and enforcement, the average final seatbelt usage rate was 78.2 percent, an increase of 14.2 percent.

Wellington High School Resource Officer, Bobby Wilson reported that after participating in the “Click it. Or ticket.” program in spring 2011, Sumner County Sheriff’s Officers issued 131 seatbelt citations with only one citation issued to a teenage driver. “I think these results show how much S.A.F.E. worked in the Wellington and Sumner County communities this past year, said Wilson.

SAFE is funded by AAA Kansas Traffic Safety Fund, AAA Missouri, State Farm Insurance, Kansas Trauma Program/SEK Trauma Council, Children’s Mercy Hospital, Kansas Department of Transportation, and Kansas Traffic Safety Resource Office.