With seat belt-related deaths on the rise in Ontario, provincial police are gearing up for a campaign aimed to make sure people are buckling up.
As they begin their annual Fall Seat Belt Campaign, the OPP will be cracking down on passengers and drivers riding without their seatbelt.
Provincial police said they've seen a spike in seat belt-related deaths this year. So far in 2019, 42 people who were not safely buckled up have died on OPP patrolled roads. That's up 20 per cent from this time last year.
Over the past five years, the OPP has investigated 233 motor vehicle deaths that were linked to a lack of seat belt use. Of those fatalities, 103 victims were ejected from a vehicle while the remaining 130 victims died from injuries sustained inside the vehicle.
"The OPP's front-line officers know first-hand from responding to tens of thousands of motor vehicle collisions every year that a driver or passenger's best chance of surviving a crash is by buckling up and benefitting from the proven, science-based protection a seat belt is designed to provide," said Deputy Commissioner Rose DiMarco, provincial commander, traffic safety and operational support.
During the seat belt campaign, OPP officers will be increasing their visibility throughout the province as they conduct education and enforcement initiatives to encourage people to buckle up. They will also be ensuring people know how to safely restrain children in a vehicle.