This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The Utah Highway Patrol has the perfect Christmas gift to your loved ones: buckle up.
UHP spokesman Dwayne Baird says that simply clicking seat belts before heading out onto the roads could have saved motorists in nine traffic accidents over the past two weeks from serious injury and, in six cases, death.
Concern over some Utah motorists' apparent disdain for seat belt usage is prompting a UHP campaign, beginning this weekend, to not only crack down on speeding and impaired drivers, but motorists who fail to fasten their seat belts.
"[We] will be putting additional troopers on the highway," Baird said. "Troopers will be putting extra focus on seat belt and speed enforcement to ensure that everyone has a safe Holiday travel season."
Drivers not only should use their seat belts, but refuse to head out on trips without first making sure all their passengers do the same, Baird said.
"For children that means a safety-rated car seat," he emphasized. "And for everyone else that means a seat belt, always, no exceptions."