The campaign by the City of Sydney, North Sydney Council, Willoughby Council, the RTA and the NSW Taxi Council is called Consider Your Options . The campaign highlights the benefits that seatbelts provide in the event of an accident, especially the reduced risk of injury. It features stickers in cabs as well as an information kit for drivers. City of Sydney Deputy Lord Mayor Lucy Turnbull said Sydney s business community relies heavily on taxis and this often involves short trips when seatbelts easily can be forgotten.
Accidents happen on short trips too.
There were 467 accidents in the three council areas in 1998 and nine percent of the people injured were not wearing seatbelts. Willoughby Mayor, Mr Pat Riley said the campaign was a timely reminder to everyone on the road to consider the consequences of not wearing a belt. The NSW Taxi Council today encouraged taxi drivers to participate in the campaign. Legally Taxi Drivers are not required to wear a seatbelt while driving the vehicle as a Taxi. Driver training encourages Drivers to weigh up the safety and security aspects of their choice.