By Robert Remler
Last week, a seat-belt law took effect that requires those under the age of 16 to "wear a safety belt or other appropriate restraining device while traveling in the rear seat of a car."
"Statistics demonstrate that [wearing] seat belts is a safer way of traveling," said Jack Simes, the Valley Stream High School District drivers' education coordinator. "They keep you in the vehicle."
According to a published report, Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety claimed that "68 percent of children ages 10 to 15 who were killed in auto accidents in 1995 were not wearing seat belts."
Violators will be subject to fines ranging from $25 to $100 under the new law, authored by State Senator Charles J. Fuschillo Jr. (R-Merrick).
But don't expect students in Mr. Simes's car to be penalized for not wearing a safety belt. He said that students riding in his driver-education cars usually put their belts on before he does. "If they're taught in the beginning to do it the correct way, I think it's just a natural reflex to put it on."
Another Valley Stream driving instructor said she often passes cars with children who aren't buckled in, so she thinks the new law is good. Lynn Fuchs, from Woman's Way Driving School, said that requiring a child to buckle up is part of a parent's role. She recommended that parents not succumb to children who say that fastening a safety belt is uncomfortable. "Make it more of a game and make it a positive act," said Ms. Fuchs.
George Kirchner sees some of the consequences of automobile accidents almost every day. "You hear stories where the people were in the back seat and ended up in the front...Obviously they weren't wearing a belt," said Mr. Kirchner, owner of Central Auto Collision in Valley Stream.
Dave Torrez, 27, called the new law "a pain in the neck," but saw its value. "If it could save you from going through a wind- shield, then it is worth it," he said.
Two Central High School students agreed with Mr. Torrez that the seat-belt regulation is a good law. Yet both, Luh-ting Cheng, 15, and Subrina Mian, 15, thought the law should be applicable to passengers over 15 as well.
Angel Mendez, 16, also a student at Central High School, said, "I don't really care. I am usually walking to most places."
The National Safety Council estimates that "more than 600 deaths and 182,000 injuries could be prevented nationwide if children under age 16 were properly restrained."
