Abilene TxDOT Event Shows Why Seat Belts Matter

If there’s one thing I’ve learned after decades on West Texas roads, it’s this: life can change in a split second. Around Abilene and across Texas, traffic is getting heavier, roads are busier, and with all the growth happening in West Texas and the Big Country, there are more gravel trucks, work trucks, and drivers than ever before.

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That’s exactly why TxDOT, local law enforcement, and first responders are reminding Texans to slow down, think ahead, and buckle up before putting the vehicle in gear.

This week, the Texas Department of Transportation TxDOT is teaming up with the Texas Department of Public Safety, Abilene Police Department, Anson Volunteer Fire Department, and Merkel Police Department for a special “Click It or Ticket” safety event in Abilene. The campaign runs through May 31 with increased seat belt enforcement across Texas.

One Simple Click Could Save Your Life

According to TxDOT, 965 people killed on Texas roads in 2025 were not wearing seat belts. While that number dropped 10% from the previous year, it’s still nearly 1,000 lives lost that might have been saved with one simple click.

One story shared by TxDOT hits especially hard:

Nineteen-year-old Camron Murrell from College Station was killed in a crash in Liberty County after his vehicle left the roadway and struck a tree. Neither he nor his passenger was wearing a seat belt.

As a husband, father, and someone who deeply loves his family, I can’t even imagine the heartbreak of losing someone because they didn’t buckle up. Before my wife Donna and I ever leave the driveway, I make sure everyone is wearing a seat belt. I’m serious about it because no trip is worth risking a life.

The Rollover Demonstration Could Change Minds

TxDOT Abilene will host a special “Click It or Ticket” press conference and rollover convincer demonstration on Thursday, May 21, 2026, at the Texas Department of Public Safety office located at 1102 E. Lowden Street in Abilene.

The event begins at 10 a.m. and will feature representatives from the Texas Department of Public Safety, Abilene Police Department, TxDOT Abilene, Anson Volunteer Fire Department, and Merkel Police Department.

Following the press conference, officials will demonstrate the rollover convincer, a powerful simulator designed to show exactly what happens during a rollover crash and why seat belts can mean the difference between life and death.

Officials say the “Click It or Ticket” campaign has helped save more than 8,600 lives in Texas since 2002, while preventing thousands of serious injuries.

West Texans Need To Watch Out For Each Other

With West Texas growing fast and more traffic filling our highways every day, defensive driving matters more than ever. Whether you’re headed across town, driving Loop 322, Interstate 20, or a back road outside Abilene, seat belts are still the best protection in a crash.

So before you back out of the driveway or pull onto the road, take one extra second.