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Seat-belt-related deaths down in Ontario: OPP

Seat-belt-related deaths have decreased on Ontario roads, reports the Ontario Provincial Police. The OPP has reported there were 120 seat-belt-related deaths on roads the police service patrolled in 2005, compared to 50 in 2014.
Sudbury.com Staff
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: OPP officers issued multiple charges against drivers in the Sudbury area licence between Jan. 30 and Feb. 3 for driving while under the influence of alcohol, driving with a suspended licence and failing to complete a commercial vehicle inspection. File photo.
Seat-belt-related deaths have decreased on Ontario roads, reports the Ontario Provincial Police.

The OPP has reported there were 120 seat-belt-related deaths on roads the police service patrolled in 2005, compared to 50 in 2014.

“We are proud to see Ontarians come such a long way with seat belt safety over the past ten years. In spite of the steady progress, we need all road users to start recognizing the significant role a seat belt plays in increasing one's chances of surviving a road crash and reducing the severity of injuries,” said Chief Superintendent Chuck Cox, provincial commander of the OPP Highway Safety Division, in a press release.

Over the Easter Long Weekend the OPP will conduct province-wide, education and targeted enforcement of seat-belt laws to address those few road users who need to be nudged to buckle up. The OPP would prefer to see drivers do this through their own initiative rather than police enforcement.

Over the past ten years (2005 to 2014), 856 people have died in road crashes in which not wearing a seat-belt was a causal factor in their deaths. More than two thirds of the deceased were males (646) and 210 were females. The majority of those who died were drivers, and 245 were passengers.