Do reminder signs promote use of safety belts?

Study Objective: To determine whether reminder signs placed at the exits to parking decks increase the rate of safety belt use. Methods: The subjects in this study were drivers of automobiles with permits to park in campus decks at a major university. Volunteer observers were positioned near the exits of 5 parking decks around the campus. Rates of safety belt use were noted before and at 2 intervals after reminder signs were installed. Results: A total of 6,780 observations were collected. The baseline rate of safety belt use was 83%. Female drivers were significantly more likely to wear a safety belt than male drivers (85.3% versus 79.6%, P<.001). Safety belt use did not increase after the signs were installed (83.3% before versus 83.5% after, P=.86). Conclusion: Placing reminder signs at the exits to parking decks did not boost the rate of safety belt use at our institution. Other strategies are needed to achieve the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s goal of increasing the overall rate of safety belt usage to 90% by the year 2005. [Clack ZA, Pitts SR, Kellermann AL. Do reminder signs promote use of safety belts? Ann Emerg Med. December 2000;36:597-601.]