The function of this simple "silent buckle" is to disable the seatbelt alarm. Many people think wearing a seatbelt is unnecessary. One driver has this to say regarding the matter:
"I rarely wear my seatbelt. I only wear it when I'm driving on the highway. You see, the traffic downtown is terrible. You can't drive fast because there are traffic jams everywhere. Wearing a seatbelt is inconvenient and unnecessary. I rarely wear it."
Another driver enjoys the peace the "silent buckle" brings him.
"The seatbelt alarm keeps beeping when you don't wear your seatbelt. It's annoying. The alarm goes silent when I plug in the 'silent buckle'."
"Silent buckles" appear in various designs, featuring cute cartoon characters or the brand of certain cars, and can be made from different materials, such as steel and plastic. And they're cheap too. The price of a pair of "silent buckles" ranges from 10 yuan to 30 yuan. Some car dealers even give them away as gifts to customers.
However, statistics reveal that not wearing a seatbelt poses a great danger to drivers and passengers. Just a few days ago, a traffic accident in Quanzhou, Fujian Province, claimed the lives of five people, two of which were children. Police discovered that no one in the car was wearing a seatbelt.
Zheng Lin is a traffic police in Dalian, Liaoning Province.
"Tests show that the chance of death when not wearing a seatbelt is 100 percent when the car reaches a speed of 150 km/h. The figure is lowered to 70 percent if people in the car wear their seatbelts."
There is no law banning the sales of "silent buckles". However, China's Road Traffic Safety Law stipulates that not wearing a seatbelt when driving is illegal and drivers may be fined as a result.
Traffic police reminds drivers, it's not worth risking your life for the extra convenience afforded to you by not wearing a seatbelt.
For CRI, I am Li Dong.
