FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Sgt. Oliver Collins, 415-897-4361, ocollins@novato.org.

Don’t Turn Thanksgiving into a Tragedy This Year

Safe Speeds, Sober Drivers and Seat Belts

Buckle Up. Every Trip. Every Time.

[Novato, CA] – The Novato Police Department is reminding holiday travelers this Thanksgiving that the only belt that should be left unbuckled this year, or any year, might be the one holding up your trousers – not the seat belts in your car.

“Seat belts have saved more lives than any other single piece of automotive safety equipment,” said Oliver Collins, Traffic Sergeant at the Novato Police Department. “But in order for them to work, they have to be used. This Thanksgiving, and every day and night of the year, make sure you buckle up your seat belt and you’ll have the opportunity to unbuckle that other belt at the feast table with your family and friends.”

Night time is one of the more dangerous times on the road because seat belt use is traditionally lower. Of the passenger vehicle occupant deaths at night during the 2010 Thanksgiving holiday period, at least 60 percent did not have their seat belts fastened (where seat belt use was known); while one half of the deaths in day-time crashes were not wearing seat belts.

“There is no holiday more closely associated with the American family, or with American travel, than Thanksgiving,” said Chris Murphy, Director of the California Office of Traffic Safety. “But if you hit the streets and highways unbelted, the faces you could be seeing this holiday might belong to an emergency room physician or nurse instead of the faces of your family and friends!”

Police, Sheriffs and the CHP will focus traffic enforcement efforts towards those who are unbelted, those driving aggressively – speeding, changing lanes, tailgating and passing when unsafe, as well as those driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Please, “Report Drunk Drivers. Call 911!”