DISABLED ON THE HIGHWAY

If your vehicle should become disabled for some reason, in most cases enough momentum is left to drift onto the shoulder of the highway.

If you should become disabled and still are on the traveled portion of the highway, the first effort should be made to get this vehicle off, onto the shoulder. Until this is possible, all persons should be evacuated from the vehicle and directed to the shoulder of the highway in a safe place. Someone should be placed (or the driver, if alone) in a position to warn other drivers of this obstacle on the roadway. The other drivers should be warned well enough in advance to avoid the hazard. This would mean a distance determined by the speed of the vehicles using the highway. Under no circumstances should this vehicle be abandoned and left on the traveled portion of the highway.

SEAT BELTS

SEAT BELTS REQUIRED 22-412
Every motor vehicle registered in the state after June 1, 1964 shall be equipped with 2 sets of seat belts each for both front and rear seats of said vehicle.

MANDATORY SEAT BELT USE 22-412.3
A person may not operate a motor vehicle unless the driver and front seat passenger are restrained by a seat belt or a child safety seat. A seat belt violation is a “stand alone” violation, that is, a vehicle operator does not have to be stopped for another violation in order to receive a citation for “failure to use seat belts”.

CHILD SAFETY SEATS (22-412.2)
A “child safety seat” means a device manufactured in accordance with the 1981 Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Act Standards and is used to restrain, seat, or position a child who is transported in a motor vehicle. This applies only to Class A (passenger), Class E (truck) 3/4 ton or less, or Class M (multipurpose) vehicles registered in this state.
Any person transporting a child under the age of 4 or weighing 40 pounds or less, regardless of age shall be transported in a safety seat.

Any person transporting a child at least 4 years old but under the age of 16 shall secure the child in a safety seat; or secure the child in a properly fastened seat belt or combination seat belt - shoulder harness.

Any person convicted of a violation of this section is subject to a fine. Statistics show that 75% of accidents involving death or injury occur within 25 miles of the victim's home; that 50% of accidents occur at speeds under 40 miles per hour.

Some drivers say that it is better to be thrown clear of the vehicle, yet research shows that you’re at least five times more likely to be killed if you are thrown out of the car. If the vehicle catches fire or goes under water, seat belts will keep the driver from being injured, keeping them more alert and capable of escaping more quickly. Less than one-half of 1% of all injury producing collisions involve fire or submersion. Even though most drivers are aware of these figures some do not use seat belts.

There are two kinds of belts, lap and shoulder, that can be used separately or in combination. The lap belt reduces impact force and keeps the occupant from being thrown out of the vehicle. The shoulder belt is especially effective in keeping the head and chest from hitting the steering wheel or instrument panel.
The purpose of using seat belts is hopefully for keeping persons from injuries and fatalities in automobile accidents.

When your vehicle is stopped by a fixed object (i.e. traveling at 60 mph and crashing into a brick wall), the vehicle will stop, but the people will continue to travel at the same speed the vehicle was traveling at before it was stopped (when not restrained). These persons will continue to travel until something gets in their way, such as the steering wheel, dashboard, maybe the windshield, they may even go through the windshield and something else will stop them, causing serious injury or death.

However, if the seat belt is being used, this “might” stop the person within the vehicle and lessen injuries or hopefully prevent him from being killed. We say “might” because the seat belt is not 100% effective.

The seat belt does restrain and actually tie you to the vehicle. When the vehicle’s progression stops, your progression stops. When having a collision, which without a seat belt would remove you from the driver’s position, there is no way the vehicle can be brought under control again until it finally comes to rest. Wearing a seat belt under these circumstances will keep you behind the steering wheel and you may be able to direct and control the vehicle from other hazards under these circumstances.