Click-It-or-Ticket Program in Tyler

TYLER — Area law enforcement once again will be participating in the Click-It-or-Ticket enforcement program this Memorial Day period. Officers will be stopping violators for not wearing their seat belts from today through June 3. Texas law requires every person sitting in the front or rear seat of a vehicle to wear a safety belt. A child less than eight years old and less than four feet, nine inches tall must be secured in a child safety seat.

Drivers can be stopped and ticketed for a safety belt violation if they, or any of their passengers under the age of 15, are not buckled up or properly restrained. Traffic fines for failing to use a seat belt or secure a child in a safety seat can run from $25 to $200, plus court costs. One continuing challenge for authorities: people in pickup trucks. Larry Krantz of Tyler’s TxDOT office says only some 80% of passengers in pickups use seat belts, compared to 92% of passengers in other vehicles.