By Philip Eckerberg
SPD Sergeant
SCOTTSBLUFF—The Nebraska Department of Transportation has awarded a seat belt enforcement grant of $7,000 for the Scottsbluff Police Department to participate in the national “Buckle Up, Every Trip, Every Time” enforcement wave. This money will be used to pay officers overtime for seat belt and other traffic enforcement from November 22nd, 2023 to November 26, 2023.
A seat belt usage rate survey was completed on Wednesday November 15, 2023. The result of the survey is that the usage rate in Scottsbluff is 54.75%. Sgt Philip Eckerberg said “the usage rate of 54.75% is normal for Scottsbluff; however, it is way too low. So far this year there have been 561 property damage crashes, 94 crashes with injuries, and 1 traffic crash fatality in the city limits of Scottsbluff.
The odds of a person being in a traffic crash are fairly high. I encourage everyone to wear a seat belt no matter how short the trip will be. A seat belt gives you much better odds of surviving a traffic crash with no major injuries.”