Rural Seat Belt Project

To effectively address the challenge of increasing seat belt use among vehicle occupants in rural areas, the Region 4 Rural Seat Belt Project was created in July 2008. The campaign will consist of high-visibility enforcement, messages and materials tailored towards rural populations regarding enforcement of seat belt laws. Efforts will take into account high risk driving times and situations, such as nighttime, rear seat belt use, and other issues related to low belt use for rural populations.

The project will re-test the strategies and refine the model developed in the Great Lakes Region (Region 5) Region-wide Rural Demonstration Program in 2005. That project marked a shift in strategy for conducting rural seat belt programs from an education/social norming approach to high-visibility enforcement. Seat belt use increased significantly in all Region 5 States, and rates increased more in rural targeted areas than they did statewide. After the first year, rural targeted areas had a median seven-percentage-point increase in belt usage, compared to 5 percentage points statewide

The cooperative effort in Region 4 will work within rural communities to prevent injuries and fatalities by raising belt use and began in two States, Georgia and Tennessee. The project complements the national "Click It or Ticket" (CIOT) mobilizations and those States launched their first campaign in November 2008. The State of Florida joined the other States with their first campaign in March 2009. The second campaign for all three States was conducted in conjunction with the national CIOT in May 2009 and the third wave takes place in November 2009. The campaign will end with the May 2010 national CIOT mobilization.

The Rural Challenge:

Rural America is significantly over-represented in the total number of fatal crashes and occupant fatalities as compared to the rest of the Nation. Rural areas account for 39 percent of the vehicle miles traveled (VMT) and 23 percent of the population. And yet in 2006, 55 percent of all traffic fatalities occurred in rural areas and 61 percent of all passenger vehicle fatal crashes and passenger vehicle occupants killed occurred on rural roads [i]. A combination of factors is responsible, some of which are unique to rural areas such as time to discovery and the delay in the delivery of emergency services to rural crash victims. Other factors include low seat belt use, alcohol involvement, high-speed crashes, vehicle rollovers, and ejections.

The most recent National Occupant Protection Use Survey (NOPUS) data show rural belt use as 78 percent in 2007 [ii], still lagging below the 82 percent national use rate. "In 2003, (the latest published data for vehicle type in rural areas), belt use in passenger cars was 76 percent, 83 percent in SUVs and vans, and only 62 percent in pickup trucks in rural areas." [iii] Increasing seat belt use as well as implementing other primary and secondary prevention strategies is essential to reduce injuries and deaths from motor vehicle crashes in rural communities.

Increasing seat belt use as well as implementing other primary and secondary prevention strategies is essential to reduce injuries and deaths from motor vehicle crashes in rural communities.

Following is the number of rural unbuckled fatalities within the demonstration project areas from 2002 – 2006:

• Florida: 691
• Georgia: 1,341
• Tennessee: 1,347