Seat Belt Enforcement Campaign Cites 21,000 in Kentucky

Kentucky officials report more than 21,000 motorists were cited recently for not wearing seat belts during a special two-week enforcement period.

But the Transportation Cabinet’s Office of Highway Safety reports officers also made 1,347 drunken driving arrests, 1,381 felony arrests and 1,156 drug arrests during the campaign, which surrounded the Memorial Day holiday. They also recovered 80 stolen vehicles and apprehended 2,003 fugitives and cited 10,995 drivers for speeding, 579 for reckless driving and 6,859 people for having no proof of insurance.

A total of 21,348 motorists were cited for not wearing their seat belt at 825 traffic safety checkpoints around the state. More than 240 state and local law enforcement agencies took park.

Kentucky’s seat belt usage rate of 80 percent falls below the national rate of 84 percent.