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Traffic Safety Watch
Nearly six of every ten children who
were killed in crashes were completely unbuckled. The National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration estimates that nearly half of these children would
be alive today if they had been properly restrained. We have all seen children
jumping from one seat to another while the car travels down the highway, or the
young child being held on the passenger's lap in the front seat. We know
it is dangerous and that at any moment one of the thousands of crashes that
occur each year in Fairfax County could happen and these children could be
killed or seriously injured. Now you can do something to help those
drivers understand the risk they are taking with those children
HOW YOU CAN HELP
When you see children in danger don't
ignore it or get mad and take matters into your own hands; report it. An
informational letter will be sent to the vehicle owners asking them to obey
Virginia's life saving child passenger safety laws. Information about how
to obtain a free seat if they can not afford one and child seat check-up event
dates will be provided. In Virginia ALL children under the age of 4 must
be in a correctly used child safety restraint appropriate for the child's size
and weight. Children over age 4 and under age 16 must also be in an
appropriate safety restraint or seat belt in all seating positions in the motor
vehicle.
AGGRESSIVE DRIVERS
The Metropolitan area has been plagued
with unsafe drivers that many people have called Agressive. In
Fairfax County we call them Road Sharks. No matter what you call
them, these unsafe and reckless drivers pose a danger to all of us. You
can assist in educating these drivers about the risks they take and the dangers
they pose to you and the other drivers on the road. When you see one of
these Aggressive Drivers (Road Sharks), don't become the aggressor and
take matters in you own hands by confronting the driver. This could be
very dangerous. Take note of the violation and location, fill out the Traffic
Safety Watch Report and return it. An informational letter and other
educational information will be sent to the vehicle owners.
Child Passenger Safety Facts
- Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death
for children ages 5-14
- In 1998, motor vehicle crashes took the lives of 2,009
child occupants ages 0-15 and injured nearly 320,000.
- Every day in 1998, an average of seven children, ages
14 and under, died and another 866 were injured in motor vehicle related
crashes.
- In 1998, nearly six of every ten children who died in
crashes were unbelted.
- Nearly half of these children would be alive today if
they had been properly restrained.
- Every state has a child passenger safety law.
Virginia's law states that all children under age 4 shall be properly
secured in a child safety restraint appropriate for the child's size and
weight in ALL seating positions.
- In Virginia ALL children over age 4 and under age 16
shall be properly secured in a safety restraint appropriate for the child's
size and weight in ALL seating positions.
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