Getting There: Seat belt scofflaws beware

Today is the Day of the Seat Belt in both the Evergreen and Famous Potatoes states as the region approaches one of the busiest driving weekends of the year.

Seat belts reduce the risk of injury and death by about 70 percent, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

As a result, law enforcement agencies in both states will begin stepped-up patrols today to watch for drivers who don’t buckle up.

Washington’s “Click It or Ticket” patrols will be funded by the Washington Traffic Safety Commission.

“We have a number of projects under way that are designed to reduce the number of traffic deaths on our roadways,” said Steve Lind, acting director of the commission. “Early results indicated that the nighttime seat belt patrols are producing positive outcomes.”

To the east, law enforcement agencies will focus on seat belt violations and aggressive driving, according to an Idahlo State Police press release.

The state’s “Click It, Don’t Risk It” campaign is an attempt to reduce the number of traffic deaths and injuries.

The emphasis in Washington will mainly occur after 7 p.m., Lind said in a news release, “because the death rate is four times higher at night than it is during the day.”

Idaho wants ideas on U.S. 95

Idahoans with ideas about improving U.S. Highway 95 might want to attend a community meeting Tuesday from 3-5 p.m. at the Silver Lake Motel in Coeur d’Alene.

Rapid growth in the Lake City and Hayden areas has resulted in more commuter pressure on U.S. 95. With more traffic, safety concerns also grow, said Staci Lehman, spokeswoman for the Kootenai Metropolitan Planning Organization.

“With so many projects vying for decreasing amounts of funding, it is unlikely money will be available to make significant capacity improvements to U.S. 95 anytime soon,” Lehman wrote.

“Inexpensive fixes are needed in the short term to improve safety and keep traffic flowing.”

The study will focus on intersection safety and efficiency.

The meeting on Tuesday at the motel, 6160 N. Sunshine St., Coeur d’Alene, will include an overview of the study and preliminary alternatives. For information, call KMPO at (800) 698-1927 or the Coeur d’Alene Chamber of Commerce at (208) 415-0109, or visit www.kmpo.net.

New lane restrictions

A construction project will start this week on U.S. Highway 195 south of Spokane, according to the Washington state Department of Transportation.

Starting today, crews will close one southbound lane of U.S. 195 at Thorpe Road to install a right-hand turn lane onto westbound Thorpe, department spokesman Al Gilson said.

Gilson said he does not expect the project to cause too many delays for southbound commuters.

Construction should take about two weeks.

More pain on Division

Last week Gilson announced lane closures for Division Street between North Foothills Drive to near Francis.

One northbound lane will be closed between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m.

From 8 p.m. to 7 a.m., crews will close two northbound lanes where they are installing fiber optic cable.

But the city also has a new obstruction for Division starting today that could extend through Friday, city streets spokeswoman Ann Deasy said.

Lanes will be closed near the center of the intersection of Division and Wellesley Avenue from 8 p.m. to 7 a.m. for water-main repair, Deasy said.

These obstructions are in addition to the closure of Ash Street from the Maple Street Bridge to Northwest Boulevard; the reconstruction of Wall Street from Wellesley to Francis Avenue; and lane restrictions on Market Street from Carlisle to Garland avenues.

Other obstructions this week include lane closures on Maple Street from the Maple Street Bridge to Second Avenue. Also, Sunset Highway Bridge will have lane restrictions this week.

Motorcycle safety

The Idaho Transportation Department wants drivers to be alert for motorcycle and scooter riders since May is “Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month.”

Motorcyclists face an 88 percent chance that they will be injured during an accident. About 70 percent of fatal motorcycle crashes in Idaho involved no cars, said ITD spokesperson Pat Beale.

Idaho requires helmets only for those younger than 18, Beale said, and two-thirds of all motorcyclists killed in Idaho last year were not wearing a helmet.

Washington requires helmets.

Construction break

Major road construction projects in Idaho and Washington will stop Friday and Monday for Memorial Day, department spokespersons said.

“Our contractors have their people coming off jobs on noon on Friday so they don’t affect traffic,” Gilson said.

“We want to get out of people’s way when they are trying to get out of town.”

The same goes for the ITD, said Wally Brown, a maintenance administrative assistant.