Beware on 15th Avenue Northwest on May 25 because for the first time since its inception, Washington State's Click it or Ticket campaign will take to the nighttime hours.

More than 75 law enforcement agencies throughout Washington will be out watching for unbuckled motorists. The nighttime death rate is four times what it is during the day - in part because many people think law enforcement can't see unbuckled motorists at night, so seat belt use is lower.

"Many people think that law enforcement can't see unbuckled motorists at night so seat belt use is lower and consequently the nighttime death rate is four times what it is during the day. This project will change that," said Lowell Porter, director of the Washington Traffic Safety Commission. _

Patrolling for seat belt violators is more difficult at night because it is hard to see the seat belt, however the Washington State Patrol pioneered an enforcement method that will be used statewide for this "Click it or Ticket" project, and involves both an observational officer and several pursuit vehicles. Once an unbuckled motorist is spotted, the observing officer radios ahead to the pursuit vehicle to make the stop.

Looking at all vehicle occupant deaths in Washington for the years 2001 - 2005, there were 2,366 vehicle occupant deaths: 1,153 (49 percent) occurred during the day (6 am - 6 pm) and 1,198 (51 percent) occurred at night (from 6:00 pm - 6:00 am). Though the number of people killed during the day is about the same as those killed at night, the death rate at night is approximately four to five times higher because traffic volumes are much lower at night. _

Statewide, there will be 75 law enforcement agencies participating in the nighttime seat belt enforcement project. This includes 11 agencies in King County, including the Bellevue, Black Diamond, SeaTac, Seattle, Issaquah, Kent, Burien, Kirkland, Shoreline, Maple Valley and Federal Way Police Departments as well as the Washington State Patrol.

"We know that people are most at risk of dying in a severe collision at night because more risky driving behavior takes place at night: more impaired driving, reckless driving and speeding, for example. So it makes sense to direct our law enforcement resources to a time and place where they will do the most good," said Porter. _

From 2005 through 2006, most seat belt tickets (85 percent) in Washington were written during the day, with only 15 percent written at night.