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This series of observational surveys to determine child safety seat use in Virginia began in 1993 at the request of officials of Virginia's Department of Motor Vehicles. During all 5 years (there was no survey in 1995), data for metropolitan areas were collected at the same locations, at the same time of day and day of week, and in accordance with the same criteria for determining use. In 1997, data collection was added for safety restraint use by occupants 4 to 16 years of age at the request of officials of the Virginia Department of Health (VDH), which is now responsible for the state's child safety seat program. In addition, VDH requested that sites be added in communities with a population between 50,000 and 100,000 (mid-size cities), so 7 sites were added. The 1998 data show that the proportion of children riding in the front seats has shifted. For metropolitan area occupants under 4 years of age, the proportion of front seat occupants was 19.6% in 1997 and 7.3% in 1998 (p
This series of observational surveys, to determine child safety seat use in Virginia, began in 1993 at the request of DMV officials. During all 4 years (there was no survey in 1995), data in metropolitan areas were collected at the same locations, at the same time of day and day of week, and according to the same criteria for determining use. In 1997, data collection was added for safety restraint use by occupants 4 to 16 years of age at the request of officials of the Department of Health, which is now responsible for the state's child safety seat program. In addition, data were collected on whether any booster seats in use were being used properly. Seven sites were also added in communities with a population between 50,000 and 100,000 (mid-size cities). For the entire vehicle, the 1997 metropolitan area child safety seat correct use rate was 54.1 %, incorrect use was 17.4%, and non-use was 28.5%. Non-use was greater in the front seats (42.1 %) than in the rear seats (25.2%). The western area had the highest non-use rate (50.0%) and the lowest correct use rate (32.1 %). Non-use and correct use in Northern Virginia, Central Virginia, and Tidewater were similar, with correct use ranging from 53.1% to 58.7% and non-use ranging from 24.8% to 29.1 %. Child safety seat use in the three areas categorized as mid-size cities (Charlottesville, Danville, and Lynchburg) was lower than in the metropolitan areas: correct use was 43.2%, incorrect use was 14.8%, and non-use was 42.0%, with Danville having the highest non-use rate at 61.9%. Non-use was higher in the front seats (66.7%) than in the rear seats (37.7%). Safety restraint/seat belt use by occupants 4 to 16 years old riding in the rear seats was very low. In the metropolitan areas, correct use was 34.9%, incorrect use was 2.3%, and non-use was 62.9%, with the western area having the highest non-use rate (69.3%). In the mid-size cities, correct use was 26.2%, incorrect use was 1.5%, and non-use was 72.3%, rates considerably worse than in the metropolitan areas, with Danville having a non-use rate of 84.7%. There was a high correct use rate for booster seats: 83.1% for the entire vehicle, 84.0% for the rear seats, and 77.8% for the front seats. The recommendations include the initiation of research to determine why child safety seat use is so low, a public information and education effort geared specifically toward child safety seat use, a special education and enforcement effort aimed at occupants 4 to 16 years of age, and frequent and continuous education and enforcement efforts because of changes in the population of the targeted groups.
The Virginia Transportation Research Council has been monitoring the use of child safety restraint systems in Virginia since 1983 through child safety seat surveys conducted annually (with the exception of 1995). The principal goal of the survey has been to estimate compliance with the relevant statutes in place at the time. Each year, data were collected from the four metropolitan areas of the state (northern, eastern, central, and western) at the same sites, on the same day of the week, and at the same hour of the day. In 1997, sites in three localities with a population between 50,000 and 100,000, referred to as mid-size cities, were added, as was data collection on safety belt use by occupants 4 to 16 years of age. This change was made because of changes to 46.2-1094 and 46.2-1095 of the Code of Virginia, which required these rear seat occupants to use safety restraints. In 1997, the percentage of children under age 4 seated in the front seat was in the double digits in every locality studied. Since then, the percentage of front seat passengers in this age group declined into single digits in all but one locality. Between 1993 and 1998, Metropolitan area survey results were characterized by a lack of consistent change, with correct use rates hovering in the 50s and mid-60s. In 1999, correct use rose to 83.2%. Similar trends had been seen in all four metropolitan areas, with the 1999 correct use rate ranging from 78.8% in the western area to 89.0% in the eastern area. A similar increase from 57.0% in 1998 to 84.6% in 1999 was noted in the mid-size cities. Lynchburg experienced the greatest increase, from 36.8% to 91.9%, with the rate in Charlottesville increasing to 88.5% and in Danville to 70.6%. In all three mid-size cities, incorrect use rates dropped to below 10%. In terms of restraint use among occupants 4 to 16 years of age, the picture is more complicated and not so positive. In the metropolitan areas, there was a modest increase in 1999 in correct restraint use (4.5 points), but nothing like the dramatic changes seen in the younger group of children. Front seat correct use rose to 61.8% in 1999, compared to the rear seat correct use of 49%. Correct restraint use among occupants 4 to 16 years of age also increased in midsize cities, but by about 10 points. These increases were not consistent across metropolitan areas or mid-size cities.
The principal goal of this child restraint survey has always been to estimate compliance with the relevant statutes in place at the time. Each summer, data were collected in the four metropolitan areas of Virginia (northern, eastern, central, and western) at the same sites, on the same day of the week, and at the same hour of the day. In 1997, sites in three mid-size cities with a population between 50,000 and 100,000 were added, as was data collection on safety belt use by occupants under 16 years of age. In 2002, additional sites in the existing mid-size cities were added to increase the sample size and a new mid-size city, Harrisonburg, was added. In addition, in 2002, the age categories used in the survey were changed to (1) infants and toddlers 0 through 3 years old, (2) preschoolers 4 through 5 years old, and (3) children 6 through 15 years old. These categories allowed the investigators to continue to analyze the longitudinal restraint use data and to evaluate the impact of the legislative changes made in 2002. A total of 2,823 children were observed during the 2002 summer survey of child restraint and safety belt use among persons under 16 years of age: 594 children under age 4 and 2,229 children aged 4 to 16. In 2002, total child safety seat use for metropolitan areas and mid-size cities combined was 93.2% and correct use was 70.8%. Total seat belt use among 4 to 16 year olds in metropolitan areas and mid-size cities combined was 65.6%, and correct use was 55.4%.
The original child restraint law passed in Virginia in 1982 required that children under 4 years of age use a child safety seat, except for those who weighed at least 40 pounds or were at least 40 inches tall, who could use a standard safety belt. In 1997, Sections 46.2-1094 and 46.2-1095 of the Code of Virginia were changed to require that all children under age 16 use safety restraints. In 2002, the legislature amended Section 46.2-1095 so that "Any person who drives on the highways of Virginia any motor vehicle manufactured after January 1, 1968, shall ensure that any child, through age five, whom he transports therein is provided with and properly secured in a child restraint device of a type which meets the standards adopted by the United States Department of Transportation" [emphasis added]. In addition, Section 46.2-1100 stipulated that "The use of a seat belt . . . shall not violate this article if (i) the affected child is at least four years old but less than six years old and (ii) the weight and size of the child is such as to make the use of such seat belt practical and the use of an approved child restraint impractical." Safety restraint use among children has been monitored in Virginia using roadside surveys since the early 1980s. Changes were made in the 2002 survey methodology to allow the survey to reflect the changes in the child restraint law. The age categories previously used in the survey were changed to (1) infants and toddlers 0 through 3 years, (2) preschoolers 4 and 5 years old, and (3) children 6 through 15 years old. These categories will allow the investigators to continue to analyze the longitudinal restraint use data using the previous age categories (0 through 3 years and 4 through 15 years) as well as to evaluate the impact of the legislative changes made in 2002 using the new age categories (0 through 5 years and 6 through 15 years) when sufficient data are available. A total of 2,452 children were observed during the 2003 survey: 353 children under age 4 and 2,099 children 4 through 15 years of age. In 2003, total child restraint use for metropolitan areas and mid-size cities combined was 91.1% and correct use was 89.3%. Total seat belt use among 4 through 15 year olds in metropolitan areas and mid-size cities combined was 65.1%, and correct use was 53.5%.
In 2004, Virginia's child restraint use survey was conducted in four metropolitan areas of the state (northern, eastern, central, and western) and in four mid-size cities (Charlottesville, Danville, Lynchburg, and Harrisonburg) at the same sites, on the same day of the week, and at the same hour of the day as in previous surveys. The principal goal of the survey is to monitor (1) safety and booster seat use by infants under 4 and preschoolers 4 and 5 years of age, and (2) safety belt use by older children 6 to 16. Each survey estimates compliance with the child restraint law in place at the time. The surveys have been conducted every year since 1983. Changes were made in the 2002 child restraint survey methodology to reflect the changes in the child restraint law. The age categories previously used were changed to (1) infants under 4, (2) preschoolers 4 and 5, and (3) older children 6 to 16. These categories will allow investigators to continue to analyze the longitudinal restraint use data using the previous age categories (infants under 4 and children 4 to 16) and to evaluate the impact of the legislative changes made in 2002. In this survey, safety belt and child safety seat use were divided into three categories: correct use, incorrect use, and nonuse. The definitions of correct use and incorrect use for child safety seats were changed in 2003 to measures that could be consistently determined from outside the vehicle. Incorrect use for children under 6 was defined to include safety seat or lap belt use by a child either too large or too small for that form of restraint. For children 6 to 16, the definition of incorrect use was not changed and included wearing the shoulder belt either behind the back or under the arm. Total use rates defined as correct plus incorrect use are also presented in the report to represent a rate not biased by any remaining variability in the incorrect use category. A total of 2,596 children were observed during the 2004 survey: 375 infants under 4 and 2,221 children 4 to 16. In 2004, total child restraint use for infants in metropolitan areas and in mid-size cities combined was 98.1% and correct use was 92.8%. Total seat belt use among 4 to 16 year olds in metropolitan areas and in mid-size cities combined was 76.0%, and correct use was 65.4%.