Join the 95% of Albertans who buckle up!

News Release
Join the 95% of Albertans who buckle up!

Congratulations Alberta for a phenomenal behaviour change over the last 15 years by wearing your seatbelts to save lives and make our roads safer!

More than 95 per cent of Albertans now wear seatbelts, up from 69 per cent in 1999. Between 2007 and 2012, this one change inside vehicles reduced unbelted fatalities by nearly 25 per cent in this province.

“There is no doubt that seatbelts save lives, so we’re encouraging that last five per cent to join us all in making our roads safer for everyone.”
– Wayne Drysdale, Minister of Transportation

Studies show that a significant number of young men between 18 and 24, in the prime of their lives, are still not buckling up. Many Albertans have been affected by the loss of a vibrant young person in a vehicle collision, and the goal is to prevent that from continuing to happen. Some of this can be prevented by encouraging all Albertans to join the majority in making the seatbelt connection.
Seatbelt statistics

From 2007 to 2012, there were 532 unbelted fatalities in Alberta.
About 20 per cent or 106 of these unbelted fatalities involved 18- to 24-year-old men.
Seatbelts can improve chances of surviving a serious or fatal crash by 50 per cent.

“About 45 per cent of the fatal collisions we go to involve an unbelted occupant. Too often it’s a single vehicle roll-over on a rural road with an unbelted young male driver. We need to get this last five per cent to buckle up so that everyone gets home safely.”
– Superintendent Howard Eaton, Officer in Charge “K” Division Traffic Services

In March, Alberta Transportation and our partners are focusing on seatbelt use. The campaign, developed jointly by the Alberta government and the Alberta Occupant Restraint Program, is also emphasizing using vehicle booster seats for children under nine who weigh less than 80 pounds.