Summer weather comes hand in hand with road trips and more hours behind the wheel.
However, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, not wearing a safety belt or making simple driving errors, can cause those trips to end abruptly and too often, fatally.
Police across the state, including East Peoria, participated in the Click It or Ticket efforts recently.
Their push, this year, was for residents to buckle up at night.
Nine out of 10 motorists buckle up, but too many do not wear a safety belt at night, thus resulting in deadly accidents according to Illinois Department of Transportation Secretary Gary Hannig.
East Peorians need to follow suit because the statistics are startling.
In 2009, the most fatalities — 106 — occurred between midnight and 2:59 a.m.
Only 23 percent — two out of 10 people — were properly restrained. The next worst timeframe was from 3 to 6 a.m. with 35 percent wearing a seat belt.
To stress the importance of wearing seat belts at night, officers stopped vehicles at night to check for compliance.
Save your life and those riding with you. Buckle up — it is the law.
