Seat belt use in 2014 remained at 87 percent, unchanged from 2013. This result is from the National Occupant Protection Use Survey (NOPUS), which is the only survey that provides nationwide probability-based observed data on seat belt use in the United States. The NOPUS is conducted annually by the National Center for Statistics and Analysis of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Seat belt use has shown an increasing trend since 1995, accompanied by a steady decline in the percentage of unrestrained passenger vehicle occupant fatalities during daytime. The 2014 survey also found the following: * Seat belt use for occupants in the West is higher than in the other regions, Northeast, Midwest, and South in 2014. * Seat belt use continued to be higher in the States in which vehicle occupants can be pulled over solely for not using seat belts (“primary law States”) as compared with the States with weaker enforcement laws (“secondary law States”) or without seat belt laws. * Seat belt use for occupants in moderately dense traffic decreased significantly from 86 percent in 2013 to 84 percent in 2014. (Author/publisher)
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