Governor Ned Lamont and the Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) are challenging Connecticut residents to buckle up and put their phones down. Governor Lamont has proclaimed Wednesday, October 25, 2023 as “Buckle Up Phone Down Day” in Connecticut to help raise awareness on the importance of wearing a seat belt and the dangers of driving distracted.
The Buckle Up Phone Down Campaign reminds motorists of the two most impactful actions they can take to remain safe behind the wheel: buckling up and putting away the phone.
“There is no excuse for texting and driving or refusing to wear a seat belt. Ensuring you are buckled up and putting distractions away helps ensure you – and everyone around you – gets to their destination safely,” said Connecticut Department of Transportation Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto. “On October 25, and every day, we ask motorists to take these simple, yet impactful, steps to stay safe. Please join these efforts and remind your colleagues, friends, family, and loved ones about the importance of Buckle Up Phone Down Day.”
Wearing a seat belt helps reduce the risk of serious injury or death in the event of a roadway crash. In 2021, the last year of verifiable data, there were 11,813 unbuckled passenger vehicle occupants killed in crashes in the United States. In Connecticut in 2021, there were 75 unbuckled passenger vehicle occupants killed in crashes.
Distracted driving is a major cause of crashes around the country and in Connecticut. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), distracted driving claimed 3,522 lives in 2021 nationally, the last year of verifiable data. In Connecticut in 2022, there were nearly 5,200 crashes attributed to distracted driving.
Buckle Up Phone Down also encourages businesses to support employee safety through policies and procedures around company vehicles, such as clearly stating all occupants must wear seat belts and drivers cannot use cell phones. Statistics show that these two policy changes could have an impact on both incidents and highway fatalities.
The Buckle Up Phone Down Campaign was first created by the Missouri Department of Transportation in 2017, and since that time, the state’s seat belt usage rate has increased from 81 percent to 89 percent. Additionally, the percentage of fatalities who were unbuckled also decreased.
Connecticut residents and businesses can join the Buckle Up Phone Down Challenge by showing their support of the initiative by posting photos and videos giving the “thumbs up-thumbs down” sign on social media with the hashtags #BUPD and #BUPDDay.