If you live in Arizona chances are, like most Americans, you plan on hitting the road this holiday weekend. People will be driving to visit family; enjoy a barbecue, spend the day at the beach or perhaps spend the weekend at a state park. But whatever they do, wherever they go,  most Americans will be driving there.

In Arizona municipal and state police are preparing for the increased traffic on state roads and highways by first warning drivers and their passengers to buckle up. Not just because it is the law (which it is in every state) but also because it is just plain safer for everyone involved.

Arizona is just one of the states participating in the national “Click It or Ticket” program. They will have increased patrols on all major roads and highways specifically watching for anyone not wearing a seat belt. And of course, they will be citing anyone they catch riding without a seat belt on.

So, if you are driving in Arizona this weekend, you don’t wear a seat belt and get a citation as a result, don’t say you weren’t warned.

As part of the national “Click It or Ticket” campaign, Arizona law enforcement agencies are ramping up traffic patrols to make sure you and your loved ones are wearing seatbelts every time you get in a car.

Between May 21st and June 3rd, the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety will take a zero-tolerance approach at seatbelt enforcement.

“Even though Arizona is a secondary law state for seatbelt usage, law enforcement officers will be taking a zero tolerance approach on drivers who are in violation of state law,” said Alberto Gutier, Director of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety.

Gutier says the “Click It or Ticket” campaign will help prevent needless tragedies on Arizona’s streets and highways.

Statistics from James Madison University show 80% of all deaths to children in motor vehicle accidents could be prevented with proper seatbelt and safety restraint use. In a 2002 report from the Naval Safety Center, 60% of more than 32,500 passengers killed in traffic accidents were not wearing their seatbelts.