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(NewsDakota.com) – The North Dakota Highway Patrol is stepping up seat belt enforcement during a Click It or Ticket campaign January 13th to 21st in southeast North Dakota.

Sergeant Josh Rude with the Highway Patrol said they will have extra officers out on the roadways during that time period in the Southeast Region.

“What we ask of our officers is to be out during peak traffic times in areas that are heavily traveled during daylight hours when it’s easy to see seat belt violations,” he said. “They’re out there making stops. They’re not just going to sit and wait until they see somebody not wearing a seat belt and try to find something wrong with them. They’re just going to be out making a lot of stop and at the same time looking for seat belt violations.”

Rude said the Patrol has four Click it or Ticket campaigns scheduled for this fiscal year, including upcoming campaigns in May and July. He said 69 percent of all fatalities in vehicle accidents last year in North Dakota were not wearing there seat belts.

“When you look at 69 percent of all fatalities were not wearing there belt, that’s too bad,” he said. “So that’s why we do this.”

Not wearing your seat belt is a primary violation for people under the age of 18, but is a secondary violation for anyone over 18, meaning they cannot be stopped just for a seatbelt violation.

The Southeast Region of the NDHP includes the counties of Eddy, Foster, Stutsman, Logan, McIntosh, Griggs, Barnes, LaMoure, Dickey, Steele, Traill, Cass, Ransom, Sargent, and Richland.