GHSO Joins East Tennessee Law Enforcement to Launch Seatbelts Are For Everyone (SAFE) Campaign

Jonesborough, Tenn. – The Tennessee Governor’s Highway Safety Office will join members of law enforcement agencies in East Tennessee to announce increased seat belt enforcement and the launch of the Seatbelts Are For Everyone (SAFE) campaign for the region. The event will take place Tuesday, February 23rd at 2:00 p.m. at the Jonesborough Visitor Center.

In 2015, 342 individuals killed in traffic crashes in Tennessee were not wearing seat belts. These lives account for nearly half of all lives lost on our roadways in passenger vehicles.  With a statewide seat belt usage rate of 86.2%, the fact that half of Tennessee’s fatalities come from only fourteen percent of the population is a disturbing statistic.

The SAFE campaign is designed to increase seat belt and child passenger safety restraint usage in Tennessee.  Law enforcement agencies participate in the campaign by planning and implementing occupant protection initiatives in their communities now through July. This is the third year that the Governor’s Highway Safety Office has held this campaign, and 159 law enforcement agencies have pledged to participate across the state.

WHO:                 
Steve Dillard, Law Enforcement Liaison, Governor’s Highway Safety Office
Richard Holt, Law Enforcement Administrator, Governor’s Highway Safety Office
Director Craig Ford, Jonesborough Department of Public Safety
Sheriff Armando Fontes, Cocke County Sheriff’s Office
Sheriff Ronnie Lawson, Hawkins County Sheriff’s Office

WHAT:                              
Seatbelts Are For Everyone (SAFE) Campaign

WHEN:              
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
2:00 p.m. EST

WHERE:            
Jonesborough Visitor Center
117 Boone Street
Jonesborough, TN 37659

For more information about the Governor’s Highway Safety Office, visit www.tntrafficsafety.org.

###