Drive home safety message

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 12/01/2017 (3367 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

If you want to survive a motor vehicle or recreational vehicle collision — or better yet, prevent one entirely — buckle your seatbelt, slow down, put away the cellphone, keep your eyes on the road, and for goodness sake, don’t drink and drive.

While that’s not a completely foolproof recipe for collision avoidance, it will certainly give you a better shot at staying alive if you find yourself on a collision course.

Apparently, this message isn’t filtering through into the public — at least not well enough — as Manitoba Public Insurance reported yesterday that there were at least 101 fatal collisions on public roadways in Manitoba in 2016, resulting in the deaths of 112 people. In fact, 2016 will go down as the deadliest in a decade, and shows a marked contrast with 2015, which recorded 69 collisions and 78 fatalities.

As well, according to MPI data, another 19 Manitobans lost their lives in snowmobile and all-terrain vehicle collisions in 2016.

In the press release issued from MPI yesterday, the organization made note that preliminary data suggests an alarming increase in impaired driving, distracted driving, excessive speed and a lack of seatbelt use as contributing factors in the fatal collisions recorded.

With regard to seatbelt use, for example, this finding is consistent with a study conducted by the Citizens on Patrol program in partnership with the RCMP last October that measured seatbelt compliance rates in 13 rural communities.

As the Sun reported in November when the results of the study were published, the average seatbelt compliance rate from the October study was 94.7 per cent — a decrease of 0.4 per cent from spring 2016. In total, more than 600 people were caught not wearing a seatbelt.

Cellphone use by drivers was also observed, with 98.7 per cent of drivers complying with the law.

In Russell, one of two Westman communities that were part of the program, the seatbelt compliance rate was 92.6 per cent, while the cellphone rate was 99.5 per cent. In Neepawa, vehicle occupants were buckled up 96.8 per cent of the time, while 99.5 per cent of people were off their cellphones.

“A 0.4 per cent decline in rural seatbelt use may not seem significant, but with the number of road deaths that have occurred on our provincial highways so far in 2016, and the fact that seatbelt use can literally make the difference between life and death in a serious motor vehicle collision, these observational studies are important and help to raise awareness about the simple steps that drivers and passengers can take to keep themselves safe in the event of a collision,” MPI spokesman Ward Keith said.

So why are Manitobans seemingly ignoring very simple safety rules? Surely it’s not hard to understand that distracted and drunk driving will increase your chances of getting into a deadly accident?

In a Dec. 15 report that announced an increase in driver insurance premiums for 2017, the Manitoba Public Utilities Board noted that at the time of its hearing into MPI’s request for a rate hike, there had been a spike in the number of fatalities in Manitoba. Of the then 85 fatalities, the corporation had indicated 70 per cent of those were on rural roads, reflecting “a problem with highway speeds in rural areas.”

Additionally, the data suggested 25 per cent of the fatalities involved victims under the age of 25 — a “continued overrepresentation of young people in collisions.”

“This spike in fatalities is alarming to the Board and the Board is of the view that the Corporation (MPI) must take the initiative, and take a more aggressive approach, towards prevention of collisions and fatalities on Manitoba roadways,” reads the PUB report.

And while the PUB acknowledged that MPI has tried to improve its road safety programming through the Crown corporation’s Loss Prevention and Road Safety Framework and through better public engagement, it suggested that MPI was not doing enough, and lacked “an overall, comprehensive vision and strategy in respect of road safety programming and goals.”

With respect to the PUB’s criticism of MPI, we agree that more can always be done to educate the public about the dangers of excessive speed, drinking and driving, and distracted driving. But at some point we also have to look at personal responsibility on the part of Manitoba motorists.

Anyone who has gone through the process of getting a driver’s licence in Manitoba knows what is legal and safe, and what isn’t. Getting a reminder of good driving habits never hurts, but we all hold personal responsibility for our actions when we get behind the wheel.

Ignorance of the consequences cannot explain away this sudden and unnecessary increase in vehicle fatalities.