Safety advocates and state officials urge motorists to buckle up and avoid driving distractions

AAA Survey Reveals 87 Percent Rated Texting or Emailing a Very Serious Threat,

Ranked Almost Even With Drunk Driving

ATLANTA, Ga. (July 30) – With the exception of 1992, more than 40,000 people throughout the U.S. have died each year as a result of traffic crashes—1.6 million deaths in the past four decades. In an effort to spark dialogue to improve our safety culture and working toward the goal of zero deaths on our nation’s highways, safety advocates and elected officials urge motorists to buckle up and avoid driving distractions.

Georgia is the only state in the nation with a safety belt law that excludes pickup trucks, which are 21 percent of the registered passenger vehicles in the state. Repealing the exemption will increase safety belt usage among pickup truck occupants by 10.4 percent, saving at least 20 lives and preventing 411 serious injuries each year. The Senate continues to pass legislation, but because of the House’s failure to move, the state has lost out on millions in federal funds for 2009. 

“We could pay at least $17.6 million in additional taxpayer-subsidized Medicaid expenses over the next ten years and millions more in trauma care costs,” said Senator Don Thomas (R-Dalton), sponsor of Senate Bill 5 which would eliminate the pickup truck exemption. “During tough economic times for Georgia and our citizens, anything we can do to save lives and save money only makes sense and is the right thing to do. It’s time for the leadership in Georgia’s House to let democracy work, get the bill out of committee and allow a full House to vote.”

While about 90 percent of occupants wear safety belts in Georgia, over 50 percent of occupants killed in crashes were not wearing one. In the rural parts of Georgia, the crash death rate is twice that of the urban parts of the state because fewer people driving on rural roads wear their safety belts.

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