Buckle Up This Memorial Day Holiday

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 12, 2026

Seat Belts Save Lives: Buckle Up May 18-31 and Every Day

ST. HELENS, OR –The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and St. Helens Police Department are urging drivers to buckle up ahead of the “Click It or Ticket” seat belt safety campaign. The national high-visibility seat belt enforcement effort, which coincides with the Memorial Day holiday, runs May 18-31, 2026.

“Seat belt use should be an automatic habit every time you get into a vehicle,” said St. Helens Police Sgt. José Castilleja. “During the Click It or Ticket campaign, we’ll be working with our fellow law enforcement officers across local and state lines to ensure the message gets out to drivers and passengers. Not buckling up could mean a ticket, or worse, risking a life.”

In 2023, there were 10,484 unbuckled passenger vehicle occupants killed in traffic crashes. The national seat belt use rate in 2024 was 91.2%.

In St. Helens, a study in March 2026 showed an 85% seat belt usage rate. Participating law enforcement agencies will be taking a no-excuses approach to seat belt law enforcement during the campaign.

One of the focuses of the Click It or Ticket seat belt campaign is nighttime enforcement. NHTSA data shows a higher number of unrestrained occupant fatalities happen at night (56% between the hours of 6 p.m. and 5:59 a.m.). Of the males killed in crashes in 2023, more than half (53%) were unrestrained. For females killed in crashes, 41% were not buckled up.

Buckle Up the Right Way

• Place the shoulder belt across the middle of the chest and away from the neck.
• Lay the lap belt across the hips and not the stomach.
• NEVER place the seat belt behind the back or under arms.

“We are asking friends and family to remind each other to buckle up in the front and back seats and to consider changing their habits if they don’t,” said Sgt. Castilleja. “Seat belts save lives, and everyone — front seat and back, child and adult — needs to remember to buckle up.”

For more information on the Click It or Ticket seat belt high-visibility enforcement campaign, please visit NHTSA.gov/ClickIt.

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For further information regarding this press release, please contact St. Helens Sgt. José Castilleja at 503-397-3333 or jcastilleja@sthelensoregon.gov.