This report on changes in death and injury associated with safety belt laws for the years 1985-1987, is divided into the following seven parts: (I) Summary; (II) Safety belt use laws; (III) Safety belt usage trends; (IV) Details of belt usage in North Carolina; (V) Change in fatalities associated with safety belt laws; (VI) Change in injuries associated with safety belt laws; and (VII) Discussion. From Part II: At the end of 1988, 31 states plus the District of Columbia had safety belt use laws, 84% of the population reside in a state with a safety belt usage law, and rear seat occupants are generally not covered. From Part III: The latest belt usage figures from belt law states indicate overall usage level to be 47%, belt usage generally higher in states with higher enforcement levels, and belt use tends to decline after the peak period immediately following introduction of the law. From Part IV: Belt usage in North Carolina rose from 25% pre-law, to 45% during the warning period, to 77% at the beginning of the enforcement period, and is now at 65%. From Part V: Analysis of Fatal Accident Reporting System (FARS) data found that fatalities among those covered by the law was 5.0% less than forecast, and among those not covered by the law increased slightly above the forecast during the same time period. From Part VI: Observed injuries are less than the number forecast based on pre-law trends with several of the reductions in the 8 to 10% range. (Author/publisher)
Abstract