11/10/2019

Government of Montevideo intensifies the enforcement of car seat use

Enforcement through the use of fines is key to creating changes in behavior that align with traffic safety best practices. Because of this, for the past 10 years, the Gonzalo Rodriguez Foundation has been urging various local governments to enforce the use of Child Restraint Systems.

During the presentation of the data from the Second Observational Study of the Use of Child Restraint Systems (CRS), which took place on October 10th in World Trade Center Tower 4, authorities from the Montevideo Transportation Administration announced that starting November 1st, CRS use will be enforced.

“At the Gonzalo Rodriguez Foundation, we work to improve child transportation safety. And it is clear that enforcement by the authorities is fundamental in order for this data to improve substantially. Because of this, we celebrate today the Montevideo Administration’s action and we join them for the implementation of the campaign “Use a Car Seat,” because it is apparent that the correct usage of CRSes reduces the possibility of fatalities up to 75% and the risk of serious injuries up to 90% in cases of traffic collisions. The adequate enforcement is something we have supported for many years and we hope that other state administrations will follow Montevideo’s example,” asserted María Fernanda Rodriguez, President of the Gonzalo Rodriguez Foundation.

“We are working with the Montevideo authorities. Our technicians trained all of the inspectors so that they will be able to correctly enforce the use of CRSes and we organized a timeline with all the municipalities to implement Checkpoints that enable parents to be instructed on the proper use of CRSes in accordance with the age, height and weight of their child(ren),” assured Rodriguez.

“We work to reduce the risks; the safety of our children in vehicles shouldn’t be a subject we postpone addressing,” said Mariela Baute, Director of Transportation Administration in Montevideo. She also listed upcoming actions including joint activities with the Gonzalo Rodriguez Foundation and each municipality (e.g. car seat checkpoint trainings).

During the presentation, the campaign “Use a Car Seat” was announced by the Gonzalo Rodriguez Foundation. A website has been developed where parents can get advice before buying a car seat.

We appreciate collaborating with Gracco, Bebesit, Chicco and Mifold because of their support of the law through special donations.

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