Child safety seat use is up in Oklahoma

(Oklahoma City-AP) -- The Oklahoma Safe Kids Coalition says the use of child safety seats in the state is increasing.

Coordinator Martha Collar says the coalition is second in the nation for the number of safety seats checked for proper installation in the past two years, and that usage of the seats is up by 16 percent.

Overall, Collar says 78 percent of Oklahoma children are being placed in safety seats.

Collar says the coalition recently received a national award from the "Safe Kids Buckle Up" program, and a state award from the University of Oklahoma College of Public Health and its Alumni Association.