Police have issued 220 summonses and 49 verbal warnings to minibus passengers for seat belt offences in a city-wide blitz.

The 24-hour operation ended yesterday, targeting minibus passengers not wearing seatbelts. Police also issued four fixed-penalty tickets to minibus drivers.

In the first half of this year there were 546 traffic accidents involving minibuses resulting in 889 casualties, compared to 544 accidents and 870 casualties in the same period last year.

Drivers or passengers not wearing seatbelts face three months' jail and a $5,000-fine.