APRIL 5, 2004

East Lansing.  Officers from the Michigan State Police Motor Carrier Division will step up enforcement this spring and summer, reminding drivers of vehicles over 10,000 lbs. that they too are required to wear their safety belt.

This enforcement initiative is in conjunction with a U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) educational effort to increase seat belt use by drivers of commercial vehicles.  USDOT is working with the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, and various trucking organizations to get the word out to drivers about the importance of complying with seat belt laws.

While vehicles over 10,000 lbs. (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating) are not required to be equipped with a shoulder harness, these vehicles must still be equipped with, and drivers must wear, a lap belt.  Many truck manufacturers voluntarily install shoulder harnesses in large trucks.

Many truck drivers believe that their vehicle is so high off the ground that they will not be ejected during a crash.  However, statistics show otherwise.  USDOT advises that in calendar year 2002:

• 588 truck drivers died in large truck crashes
• 311 of those drivers were not wearing seat belts
• 134 of those died from being ejected

Additional information, including the final report of the study, is available at www.fmcsa.dot.gov.

Read more press releases from the Michigan State Police.