In an effort to promote safe travel for children on Illinois roadways, the Illinois Department of Transportation, Division of Traffic Safety is committed to supporting a Child Passenger Safety Program designed to reduce serious injury and fatalities to children while traveling.

Through media interviews, publications, informational mailings to school districts, community health and safety fairs, and booster seat education and installation events across the state, the Division of Traffic Safety is devoted to educating the public, especially parents and caregivers, on how important it is to protect children in motor vehicles.

As of January 1, 2004 , the Illinois Child Passenger Protection Act was amended to require children under the age of 8 years to be restrained in an appropriate child restraint system. Previously, children only under the age of 4 were required to be restrained in an appropriate child restraint system.

Currently, children under the age of 8 years must be secured in an appropriate child restraint system, more commonly called a child safety seat. Child safety seats include infant seats, convertible seats (rear-facing for infants and forward-facing for toddlers), and booster seats that are used with the vehicle lap and shoulder belt system. A child weighing more than 40 pounds may be transported in the back seat of a motor vehicle while wearing only a lap belt if the back seat is not equipped with a lap and shoulder belt system. Children and young people ages 8 to 16 years must be properly secured in a safety belt.

So many injuries and/or fatalities to children in crash happened because a lap and shoulder belt didn't fit them appropriately. A booster seat can reduce severe injuries and fatalities in children typically between the ages of 4 and 8 by “boosting” the child up on the vehicle seat to allow the safety belt to fit appropriately. If properly installed, child restraints work to allow the child's body to stop as the vehicle is slowing, reducing the forces on the child's body and preventing contact with hard surfaces inside the vehicle, with other occupants, the road, or other vehicles.

Under current law, a parent or legal guardian is responsible for providing a child safety seat or booster seat to anyone who transports his or her child. A violation of this Act is punishable by a fine of no more than $50, but can be waived if there is proof of owning an appropriate child restraint system. A subsequent violation of this Act is punishable by a fine of no more than $100.

In order to effectively instruct parents and caregivers on this issue, the Division of Traffic Safety looks to grantees for assistance. These coordinators utilize federal funds to promote awareness and education to Illinois motorists on Child Passenger Safety issues. These coordinators conduct National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Standardized Child Passenger Safety Technician trainings and education events, organize checkpoints for parents/caregivers, and serve as a resource to technicians, instructors and the general public.

The following is a list of grantees in Illinois :

• Cathy Kimball
  Illinois State Coordinator for Child Passenger Safety
  Illinois CPS Resource Center at Eastern Illinois University
  Toll Free 877-581-5881
• Tom McQueen
  Northern Illinois Coordinator for Child Passenger Safety
  Rush Copley Medical Center
  Phone 630-236-4262
• Jahari Piersol
  Central Illinois Coordinator for Child Passenger Safety
  Champaign-Urbana Public Health District
  Phone 217-373-7901

For further information on child passenger safety, please contact IDOT's Division of Traffic Safety at 217-782-4972.