Make no mistake, police and sheriff’s deputies are always looking to make sure driver’s are buckled up, but starting this coming Monday, law enforcement will be stepping up that enforcement through the Click It or Ticket campaign.

According to numbers released by the Austin Police Department and Mower County Sheriff’s Department, unbelted motorists account for nearly half of Minnesota’s traffic death’s each year.

From May 18-31, as part of the Minnesota-wide Department of Public Safety Safe & Sober — Click It or Ticket programs, these law enforcement agencies will be stepping up their patrols.

“This is to further encourage people to use it (seat belt),” Austin Police Chief Paul Philipp said.

“To me, it’s a no-brainer. This is something simply you can do that helps you significantly survive a motor vehicle accident.”

Data taken from 2006-08 shows that of the eight killed on Mower County roads, five were not wearing seat belts. Another 12 unbelted motorists were seriously injured during this period.

Over the past three years data shows that throughout the state, 1,096 motorists were killed in crashes and 518 of those were not using their seat belt.

However, the campaign to get more motorists to buckle up seems to be on the rise.

Austin Police Department’s Brian Blake said that the number has nearly matched the rate of Minnesotans putting on seat belts. Blake said that currently 77 percent of motorists have been found to be wearing their seat belts.

In this area, that percentile lies in the low 70 percent range.

“Overall we’ve gone up,” Blake said. “We’re not quite where everybody else. There’s room to improve.”

The Click It or Ticket campaign isn’t strictly the enforcement of seat belt wearing. It’s about prevention.

The Mower County Safe Communities Coalition has put signs up around town reminding motorists to buckle up as well as there being signs up around the county.

Along with the overall enforcement, both the Austin Police Department and Mower County Sheriff’s office will conduct special night seat belt enforcement patrols.

Statistics released by the DSP showed that 276 vehicle occupant deaths during that two-year period between 2006 and 2008 were at night.

Sixty-one percent of those were not wearing seat belts.