It's become an annual tradition in Richmond. A delegate introduces a bill for stricter seatbelt laws, then the bill quickly dies.

House Bill 2136, which would have made failure to wear a seatbelt a primary offense so that police could pull people over and ticket them for it, died in the Committee on Militia, Police, and Public Safety Thursday morning. Under current law, officers can write a citation for not wearing a seatbelt only after pulling over a driver for another infraction.

According to AAA Mid-Atlantic, 40 percent of fatalities on Virginia roads involve drivers and passengers not wearing seatbelts.

“It is difficult to comprehend why year-after-year saving 71 lives is not enough to convince lawmakers that a primary seat belt law is needed in Virginia,” said AAA spokeswoman Martha Meade.