Following the success of the first year of the nighttime Click It or Ticket seat belt enforcement patrols during May and October 2007, extra law enforcement officers have taken to the streets at night until June 1.

Statewide, there will be 46 law enforcement agencies participating in the nighttime seat belt enforcement project including Burien and SeaTac as well as the Washington State Patrol.

During 2007, both daytime and nighttime vehicle occupant fatalities were lower compared to the previous ten years. According to preliminary numbers, nighttime vehicle occupant deaths were 13% lower during 2007 (216 deaths vs. the 247 average for the previous ten years) and daytime vehicle occupant deaths were down 21% (194 deaths during 2007 vs. the 245 average for the previous ten years). __

"We have a number of projects underway that are designed to reduce the number of traffic deaths on our roadways. We are evaluating their effectiveness and early results indicate that the nighttime seat belt patrols are producing positive outcomes," said Steve Lind, Traffic Safety Commission acting director.

"Other Click It or Ticket seat belt patrols were directed to take place after 7 p.m. because the death rate is four times higher at night than it is during the day," Lind said. __

When used correctly, seat belts reduce the risk of injury and death by about 70 percent, according to local and national research.

The patrols will be conducted in the same manner as before, involving both an observational officer and patrol vehicles. When an unbuckled motorist is spotted, the observing officer radios ahead to the patrol vehicle to make the stop.

Washington's seat belt law passed in 1986, and at that time only 36 percent of motorists buckled up. Washington's primary seat belt law (which gives law enforcement the authority to pull over unbuckled motorists) became effective in June 2002, at which time seat belt use in the state hovered at 83 percent.