Car and Booster Seats Save Lives

During Safe Kids Week the province is encouraging people who drive with children to always, Give Your Kid a Boost!

Safe Kids Week is May 30 to June 5 and this year's theme is focusing on child passenger safety.

"Proper use of a car seat or booster seat can save a child's life," said Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal Minister Bill Estabrooks. "The safest place for your child in a collision is a correctly installed car or booster seat that is appropriate for their height and weight."

Nova Scotia is one of seven provinces with mandatory booster seat legislation for children under four feet nine inches tall. Children must weigh at least 18 kg (40 pounds) to move to a booster seat. A child should also be at least four years old. They must use a booster seat until they are nine years old or 145 cm (4 ft. 9 in.) tall.

The province has introduced a range of road safety initiatives aimed at reducing the deaths and serious injuries of children due to motor vehicle crashes. In April legislation was tabled that will increase penalties for people who drive while impaired with children in their vehicle. Speed fines have been doubled in school zones, and the province intends to introduce legislation in the fall to reduce speeds in school zones from 50 to 30 kilometres per hour. The province also requires that all new school buses be equipped with seats with seat belts for children under 40 pounds. By 2020 all buses will have these seats.

The province is also a partner of Child Safety Link, which promotes use of car and booster seats in Nova Scotia.

"Injuries can often be prevented, which is why it's important for parents to be informed on the installation and usage of a child safety seat," said Maureen MacDonald, Minister of Health and Wellness. "Our partnership with Child Safety Link accomplishes this by giving parents and organizations that work with families, the support and access to information when it comes to child and car safety."

"Car crashes are a major cause of death and injury for children in Nova Scotia," said Kim Mundle, Child Safety Link's car seat specialist. "When you use the right car seat in the right way, you can reduce the risk by 70 per cent."

For more information on car and booster seats visit www.childsafetylink.ca. For more information on Safe Kids Canada and Safe Kids Week visit www.safekidscanada.ca