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The following is a press release from the Illinois State Police:

Illinois State Police District 14 Commander, Captain Robert L. Elliott today announced that District 14 Troopers will be conducting Occupant Restraint Enforcement Patrols (OREP) in Fulton, Warren, and Henderson Counties during the month of January.

Occupant Restraint Enforcement Patrols are funded through a grant provided by the U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The grant is administered by the Illinois Department of Transportation/Division of Traffic Safety.

The grant allows the Illinois State Police to target an area with saturation patrols that focus on traffic violations and related compliance with safety belt and child safety seat laws. Safety belt enforcement zones will also be set up to ensure the driver and passengers are buckled up.

Safety belts are one of the most effective safety devices in vehicles today, estimated to save over 15,000 lives each year.

Over half of vehicle occupants killed in a traffic crash were not properly buckled up.

The objective of this program is to increase compliance of occupant restraint laws through education, child-seat inspections, and enforcement. Greater awareness, acceptance, and use of occupant protection equipment will save many lives.