MO'ILI'ILI — Within 30 minutes of launching this year's Click It or Ticket campaign, Honolulu police issued tickets yesterday to two women.

One was a young woman in her car talking on a cell phone and the other was an elderly woman. Both were driving down busy South Beretania Street at the intersection of Isenberg Street — the site of the launch of the annual seat-belt enforcement campaign, which began yesterday and runs through June 1 on all islands except O'ahu, where it will be extended through June 14.

"The data still shows that seat belts save lives," said Brennon Morioka, state Department of Transportation director. "Last year 40 percent of the fatalities weren't wearing seat belts."

All four counties kicked off their seat-belt campaigns yesterday. Roving patrols will be set up at key intersections around the state with checkpoints and message boards, police said.

Hawai'i leads the nation in seat-belt use, with a compliance rate of 97.6 percent last year. The national seat-belt use rate is 82 percent.

Hawai'i scofflaws receive a $92 ticket for not wearing their seat belts.

Laurel Hannell, a Honolulu resident, said wearing a seat belt is automatic for her.

"I use my seat belt every time I get in the car," Hannell said as she was putting groceries in her vehicle at the Mo'ili'ili Star Market. "I do it automatically. I don't care to die any sooner than I have to."

State law requires drivers, front-seat passengers and back-seat passengers younger than 18 to buckle up. Children under 4 must ride in a child safety seat and a booster seat is required for children under 8. Violators of the child passenger restraint use law are required to pay a fine between $100 and $500 and attend a four-hour class.

Honolulu police Maj. Susan Dowsett said the extension of the Click It or Ticket program on O'ahu for an additional two weeks is to cover the graduation season.

"We like to have our presence over an extended period of time," Dowsett said. "We want to make it habit."

The seat-belt law went into effect in 1983. Before it was enacted, the number of traffic fatalities exceeded 100; last year there were 77. Last year police statewide issued 2,793 tickets for seat-belt violations and 170 tickets for child safety restraint infractions.

The Click It or Ticket program is funded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

"I use my seat belt all the time," said Ivant Tilgenkamp, a Kaimuki resident. "It just makes sense to use it because when you don't you can get banged around in a car accident. It's easy to use, like putting a key in the ignition."