1 week Ago By Brandon Sun
As you are crossing a street with traffic approaching, don’t assume the driver is going to stop. If you are approaching oncoming traffic while driving, don’t assume they will stay in their own lane. In either instance, don’t assume the other driver is paying attention or unimpaired.
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After your 4 weeks access is complete your rate will increase by $4.99 a X percent off the regular rate. As you are crossing a street with traffic approaching, don’t assume the driver is going to stop.
If you are approaching oncoming traffic while driving, don’t assume they will stay in their own lane. In either instance, don’t assume the other driver is paying attention or unimpaired. Read unlimited articles for free today: Already have an account? Opinion As you are crossing a street with traffic approaching, don’t assume the driver is going to stop.
If you are approaching oncoming traffic while driving, don’t assume they will stay in their own lane. In either instance, don’t assume the other driver is paying attention or unimpaired. That’s the message to be gleaned from three recent reports regarding road safety in Manitoba.
Last month, as part of National Impaired Driving Prevention Week, Manitoba Public Insurance revealed that in 2024, 15 people died, and 118 were injured — with some sustaining life-altering injuries — in impaired driving collisions in Manitoba. Over the previous five years, 91 people died and more than 350 sustained injuries. On Wednesday of this week, as part of MPI’s April Distracted Driver Awareness Month campaign, the Crown corporation disclosed that more Manitoba drivers’ licences were suspended for distracted driving in 2024 than in any of the four previous years.
From 2023 to 2024, the number of three-day suspensions climbed from 2,469 to 2,817. There were 98 seven-day suspensions in 2023, but that number rose to 150 last year. As of March 26 of this year, 638 people have already had their licences suspended this year due to distracted driving, putting the province on pace to match or exceed last year’s number of suspensions.
Distracted driving was the primary cause of 675 collisions in Manitoba last year. Of the 84 people killed in Manitoba in 2024 due to motor vehicle collisions, a staggering 34 deaths were caused by distracted driving. You read that correctly.
Thirty-four Manitobans are no longer with us because drivers couldn’t simply keep their eyes on the road and hands upon the wheel. Yesterday, it was reported that 47 per cent (97 of 207) of Winnipeg drivers screened for drugs as part of the Winnipeg Police Service’s “Don’t Drive High” campaign tested positive for cannabis consumption. The tests were performed between January and March of this year, and this year’s numbers are roughly consistent with last year’s test results for the same time frame, which found that 43 per cent of drivers tested positive for the drug.
Surprisingly, the majority of positive test results this year occurred between 3 and 6 p.m. The three reports combine to create a disheartening picture of the dangers of driving on Manitoba roads, let alone being a passenger or pedestrian.
Despite years of advertising and other information awareness campaigns aimed at convincing Manitobans to not drink and drive, to not drive while high, and the dangers of distracted driving, too many drivers still aren’t getting the message. In fact, the situation may be even worse than the statistics suggest, given that many impaired and/or distracted drivers are never caught in the act. The sight of people looking at their phones, and in many cases texting, while driving is far too common here in Brandon and across the province.
What can be done to solve the problem? While even harsher penalties — including higher fines and lower thresholds for vehicle confiscation and sentences that include jail time — could deter some drivers from driving while drunk, high or distracted, MPI offers some simple advice to prevent distracted driving. It recommends that we get in the habit of activating the “do not disturb” button on our smartphones prior to driving, thereby preventing incoming calls, messages and notifications from distracting our attention. Those measures might help reduce the problem, but what would make the greatest difference is for Manitobans to stop ignoring the dangers of driving while distracted, or after drinking or getting high.
Too many drivers still think that drinking or getting high doesn’t impair their driving skills. And far too many think that looking at their phones while driving is harmless and risk-free. They are wrong, and there are 34 fresh graves in the province to prove it.
If you are thinking of driving after drinking or getting high, don’t do it. Give they keys to some sober person before you start drinking or doing drugs. If you are tempted to check your phone while driving, activate the “do not disturb” function before you start the car and put it where you can neither see, hear nor reach it easily.
If you can do that, you might save a life — perhaps your own. Advertisement Advertisement.
