logo
E-edition LogIn Accessibility Policy Subscribe
logo
E-edition LogIn Accessibility Policy Subscribe
Google Play App Store
  • Contact us
  • Netx crossroads
  • News
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Obituaries
  • Newsletter
    • Contact us
    • Netx crossroads
    • News
    • Sports
    • Opinion
    • Lifestyle
    • Obituaries
    • Newsletter
Buckle up to save your own life: Click It or Ticket
Family Driving Down Country Road in a Convertible
KennyonMay 17, 2024
Buckle up to save your own life: Click It or Ticket

In the time it takes to read this sentence, Texans can click their seat belt and save themselves

from an early grave — and save their loved ones from the sorrow of preventable loss.

While millions wear their seat belts every day as drivers or passengers, unbuckled drivers and passengers

accounted for 1,183 — that’s 28% — of the more than 4,200 lives lost on Texas roads last year. If you take

away pedestrian, bicycle and motorcycle fatalities, in which a seat belt couldn’t be worn, nearly half of all

fatalities in Texas were from people not wearing a seat belt.

In the Atlanta District in 2023, motor vehicle traffic crashes with unrestrained occupants resulted in the deaths

of 22 people and the serious injury of 68 others.

The harsh reality is that life can be ripped away from our loved ones in the blink of an eye — especially if they’re

not wearing a seat belt.

“If only David had buckled up that day, he’d still be with us,” said Doreen Palestrant, the mother of a

17-year-old Kerrville high school football player who lost his life in a November 2021 rollover crash that took

his life. David, who was unbuckled in the back seat, died at the scene when the pickup he was riding in rolled

several times.

“There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t think about my son,” she said. “In my son’s memory, I encourage all

Texans to always wear their seat belt, whether for a short trip around the block or a longer trip across town.”

TxDOT’s annual Click It or Ticket campaign aims to save lives by getting drivers and passengers to wear their

seat belt 100% of the time.

“Buckling up is both the simplest and most effective safety decision that most of us make every day,” said TxDOT
Executive Director Marc Williams. “No one ever expects to be in a crash, and that’s why it’s so important to always
put your seat belt on every time you get in a vehicle. The one time you skip it could be the time you pay the price.”

In addition to conducting educational outreach, the campaign partners with Texas law enforcement around the state

to step up enforcement of seat belt and car seat laws from May 20 through June 2, including Memorial Day weekend.

Texas law requires everyone in a vehicle to buckle up or face fines and court costs up to $200. Children younger

than 8 years old must be in a child safety seat or booster seat unless they’re taller than 4 feet 9 inches. If they

aren’t properly restrained, the driver faces fines up to $250 plus court costs. TxDOT offers free safety seat

inspections across the state.

TxDOT’s Click It or Ticket campaign is a key component of #EndTheStreakTX, a broader social media and

word-of-mouth effort that encourages drivers to make safer choices while behind the wheel to help end the streak

of daily deaths. Nov. 7, 2000, was the last deathless day on Texas roadways.

ePaper
coogle_play
app_store
It might also interest you...
Chris Spencer Launches Campaign for Texas House District 1
A: Main, News
Chris Spencer Launches Campaign for Texas House District 1
Spencer announces with over $100k on hand and a slew of conservative endorsements
Kenny 
July 15, 2025
Business owner and community leader Chris Spencer today announced his campaign for Texas House District 1, starting with over $100k in the bank and en...
Maud woman charged with manslaughter following fatal crash
A: Main, News
Maud woman charged with manslaughter following fatal crash
Kenny 
July 9, 2025
By Susan Lindsey Staff Reporter A Maud woman is facing intoxicated manslaughter for a June drunk driving accident that resulted in the death of a pass...
NETX Properties earns Integrity Award from Better Business Bureau
Main, News
NETX Properties earns Integrity Award from Better Business Bureau
Kenny Mitchell Publisher 
July 9, 2025
The Better Business Bureau of Northeast and Central Louisiana and the Ark-La-Tex’s 13th BBB Torch Awards were held at Northridge Country Club in Texar...
TWDB orders mediation on need for Marvin Nichols
Main, News
TWDB orders mediation on need for Marvin Nichols
Kenny Mitchell Publisher 
July 9, 2025
Thanks to a ruling last week by the Texas Water Development Board, water planners in Region D (Northeast Texas) and Region C (DFW area) will head to m...
NBPD investigating ATM robbery
Main, News
NBPD investigating ATM robbery
Susan Lindsey Staff Reporter 
July 9, 2025
Investigators with the New Boston Police Department are searching for three individuals who robbed an automated teller machine at a local bank. The ro...
DeKalb hires new Police Chief
A: Main, Main, News
DeKalb hires new Police Chief
Susan Lindsey Staff Reporter 
July 9, 2025
The City of DeKalb Mayor Lowell Walker provided the Tribune with an advance press release in regards to the hiring of a new Police Chief and requested...

BOWIE COUNTY CITIZENS TRIBUNE
139 E.N. Front Street
New Boston, Texas 75570

This site complies with ADA requirements

| Bowie County Citizens Tribune | All Rights Reserved

  • Contact
  • Accessibility Policy