Eighty-eight percent of Albert Lea motorists were found to be buckling up following 2011 Click It or Ticket enhanced seat belt education and enforcement campaigns that occurred in May and October, according to the Albert Lea Police Department.

The new rate is down compared to last October’s 92 percent compliance — and below the current statewide rate of 92.7 percent.

Albert Lea Police Lt. J.D. Carlson said the decrease means more motorists are putting their lives at risk.

Officers conducted informal belt observational surveys of motorists earlier this year.

Local rates have increased overall within recent years subsequent to Minnesota’s primary seatbelt law. In October 2008, Albert Lea’s compliance rate was 73 percent.

“It’s still a concern that belt use remains lower thanwe would like to see,” Carlson said. “The math is simple, the more of us buckling up, the fewer preventable tragedies there will be.”

In Freeborn County during the last three years, four unbelted motorists were killed and five were seriously injured. Statewide during this same period, 409 unbelted motorists were killed and 814 suffered serious, life-altering injuries.

For belts to be worn correctly, they must be low and snug across the hips; shoulder straps should never be tucked under an arm or behind the back, according to a news release.

During the October seat belt campaign, from Oct. 14 through 27, officers enforced the state’s primary seat belt law that requires passengers in all seating positions, including the back seat, to be buckled up or seated in the correct child restraint.

Local agencies issued five seat belt and one child restraint citations during the two week effort — 60 percent of the belt citations were written during nighttime hours, when belt use is at its lowest.

The campaign also included enforcement of Minnesota’s strengthened child passenger safety law which requires children to use a booster seat starting after they have outgrown a forward-facing harnessed restraint (typically 40-60 pounds, depending on seat’s weight limitations). Children should remain in a booster until they are age 8 or 4 feet 9 inches tall — whichever comes first. It is recommended, however, to keep a child in a booster based on their height rather than age. Boosters help adult seat belts fit children correctly.

The Click It or Ticket seat belt education and enforcement campaign is a component of the state’s Toward Zero Death initiative.