There’s a new twist to the “Click it or Ticket” mobilization in Door County this year. Lieutenant Jeff Farley of the Door County Sheriff’s Department says, in the past, law enforcement agencies in the county participated in the program, but on a separate basis, but that will change in 2012…[audio:http://wdor.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/N790.mp3|titles=Lieutenant Farley]
Lieutenant Farley says the joint patrols are symbolic of the cooperative arrangement between the sheriff’s department & city police…[audio:http://wdor.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/N791.mp3|titles=Lieutenant Farley]
Farley says seatbelt use in Wisconsin lags behind the national average & neighboring states. He says, in Wisconsin, 79% of drivers & passengers were buckling up in 2011, but the national average is 84%. The use of safety belts is closer to 90% in Michigan & Illinois. Lieutenant Farley says a 10% increase in seatbelt usage in Wisconsin would save about 44 lives & prevent 650 injuries every year.