Safety tip

In this day and age of vehicles loaded with safety features, some people may be complacent about wearing seat belts. Yet, statistics continue to show that wearing seat belts saves lives.Here are some quick numbers from the Colorado Department of Transportation:

• Colorado has seen a 29 percent increase in traffic fatalities since 2014.
• Sixteen percent of Coloradans do not buckle up despite seat belt laws.
• In 2017, 211 people who were not wearing seat belts died in traffic crashes in Colorado, which is a 14 percent increase from 2016.
• In 2017, El Paso County recorded the highest number of traffic fatalities (76) in the state.

Why do people choose not to buckle up? Some may believe that seat belts are unnecessary because of advanced safety features in newer vehicles. Others might think that seat belts are not necessary for that short drive to the store. Back seat passengers might feel they are safe enough since they are not sitting in front of the windshield.The fact is that seat belts have been part of vehicle safety for decades, and continue to be an integral part of todayís safety systems. They can keep people restrained during a crash, or even during sudden maneuvers like hard braking or swerving to avoid an obstacle or another car. And as for those unbelted back seat passengers, they can become a hazard to others in the vehicle when they are jolted loose from the force of a crash.Here are the seat belt laws in Colorado direct from the Colorado State Patrol website. The child passenger safety law clearly defines child safety seat and seat belt use from birth through age 15 as follows:

• The law requires infants to ride in a rear-facing child safety seat until they are at least 1 year old and weigh less than 20 pounds.
• The law requires children ages 1 to 4 years old that weigh at least 20 pounds up to 40 pounds to be restrained in a forward-facing or rear-facing child safety seat.
• The law requires that children who weigh over 40 pounds or who are at least 4 years old be properly restrained in a child booster seat or with a child safety belt-positioning device. Children must ride in booster seats until they are 8 years old.
• A child who is at least 8 years old must be properly restrained with a safety belt or child restraint system.

Buckle up every time. Not only is it the law, it is your life.