UT’s Center for Transportation Research has helped spearhead efforts in East Tennessee to increase seat belt use in recent months.
Now, those efforts got some help of their own thanks to an article in the Maryville Daily Times.
Jerry Everett, Research Director at the Center, told the Daily Times that while the goal of the effort was to increase overall seat belt use, they were also particularly focused on the fact that nighttime seatbelt use is about 10 percent less than its daytime counterpart.
In addition to Blount County, the study is focused on Knox, Loudon, Sevier and Roane counties.
As part of the demonstration, the Center’s “Seat Belt Convincer” allows people to take part in a simulated slow-speed crash, showing how, at even just 5-7 miles per hour, a seat belt is an important safety device.
The article can be read here (free, but with registration required)