The ‘Click It or Ticket Campaign’ is part of a nationwide effort to get more people to wear seat belts.
In Cuyahoga County, police are reminding drivers to buckle up during one of the busiest travel times of the year.
Students at Ford Intermediate School are mixing art with safety, during the campaign. They are painting rocks that say ‘Buckle Up!’ or ‘Click It.’
Jennifer Walker with the Cuyahoga County Safe Communities Coalition talked about why some people are still not buckling up, despite signs and beeps reminding drivers to put their seat belts on, once they enter their cars.
"There are people that will go the extra effort of buckling up behind them, listening to that annoying beep the entire drive, just to not buckle up, so I’m not sure,” said Walker, “Some people don't like to be told what to do, they don't like that it's a law.”
The 5th and 6th graders at Ford Intermediate are hoping to make a difference with a bit of paint and some rocks.
“They're like click it or ticket, people!” said Xander Willet, a 5th Grade student.
Some of them were coloring the small rocks with a stroke of inspiration from a renaissance artist.
“Vincent Van Gogh, because he likes to swirl stuff,” said Indra Wentzel, 5th Grade Student, “Mixes all kind of colors and throws stuff around.”
In the name of art and safety, these rocks could be hidden anywhere for the next two weeks in the suburbs of Cleveland.
People are being asked to find the rocks and spread the message on the ‘Cuyahoga County Safe Community’ Facebook page.
Last year, the Ohio State Highway Patrol wrote almost 3,000 seat belt citations.
“They [the drivers] complain it's uncomfortable, but the bottom line is there is no excuse, considering how much it protects you in a crash,” said Walker.
She said almost three-fourth of all those killed in car crashes were not buckled up. She cited airbags, as giving some folks a false sense of security.
“Airbag comes at you at like 200 miles an hour, you do not want to hit that being unrestrained. It will cause a lot of damage,” said Walker.
Nationally, around 83 percent of people wear their seatbelts when they get in a car, according to Walker.
In Cuyahoga County, only 75 percent wear their seat belts, so she and the students have an important message to be delivered: to buckle up.
The ‘Click It or Ticket’ campaign will run until June 4th.
During that time period, officers will be out on the streets aggressively enforcing the law, making sure all drivers are wearing their seatbelts.
