THE council has urged motorists to make sure they and their passengers are belted up when travelling.

This follows an operation carried out where 45 drivers and passengers travelling along Cross Street, in Sale, were identified as not wearing seatbelts during a three-hour period.

Offenders were given the option to either accept a £30 fine or watch a 15-minute presentation given by the fire service highlighting the dangers of driving unsafely. Forty-one people chose to watch the presentation.

The operation was carried out by Trafford Council’s road safety team, Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service and Greater Manchester Police.

Executive councillor Alan Mitchell said: “The number of people that were stopped during this operation is quite shocking and I would urge people to belt up to make sure they are travelling safely through Trafford. The message is simple – Seatbelts Save Lives – and everybody should wear one.”

Chief Superintendent Janette McCormick, of Trafford Police, said: “It doesn’t matter if you are only making a short or a local journey, the need to wear a seatbelt is as great then as it is at any time.

“No matter how sophisticated a car is or how many other safety features or gadgets it may have, you are effectively negating all of them if you fail to wear a seat belt.”

Tim Clear, Sale Station commander for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, said, “Unfortunately our firefighters regularly have to attend the scenes of road traffic collisions where people have been seriously injured or even killed, it is a startling fact that as a service we now rescue more people from road crashes than fires every year.

“Anyone not wearing a seatbelt is certainly going to suffer more serious injuries.”

The initiative also saw seven people reported for using a mobile phone while driving. They will receive a £60 fine and three points on their licence. One vehicle was also seized for having no insurance and another for having no tax.